The forgotten Life
by TheMoonKid01
Summary: Kouki's live has never been easy, but his friends made his problems seem less hard. They taught him to be more confident and he could finally enjoy his life. But all glee and happiness ended the day he died… A Noragami Fanfiction of Yukine's life before he died and became Yato's Shinki. In case of confusion Kouki is Yukine's name when he was alive.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

 **A/N: Sorry for any language and grammar mistakes! After watching Noragami I really wanted to try writing a fanfiction about Yukine's life before he was a Shinki. Besides I used a lot of OCs in this story and I hope everthing is clearly and understandable. If not you can PM me or leave review and I'll make a list of the characters with a description of their appearance and character :) Hope you like it ^^**

"I can't believe this is already the last day of the summer holidays…" Ren sighed and slumped into the soft green meadow. The wind blew through her long ruby hair and she closed her emerald eyes. "Me too…" Kouki agreed and sat down next to her looking up at the sky. They remained silent for a while, enjoying the comfortable silence. Some birds were singing their lovely melody and the sun was shining brightly this day. "Kouki?" the boy turned his head and looked at the girl. "We should spend every summer holiday here. This place is awesome!" the girl opened her eyes with a smile. "I'm glad we found this place here." She added and the boy nodded in agreement, "I wish we could stay here forever." The boy closed his eyes for a moment. The meadow was a place where the two used to meet since they know each other. It was placed behind a wood and was rather isolated and there were always just the two of them so they could enjoy the time alone without any other people. "Promise me that we will spend every day of the next summer holidays here." Ren extended her hand to him and he entwined his little finger with her one. "I promise." He said with a small smile and the girl giggled. Kouki looked back at the sky and began to daydream.

"Hey look!" Ren sat up and picked up a flower which grew next to her. "This flower has the same colour as your eyes!" she smiled brightly and the boy eyed the flower, it was a bright orange marigold. He smiled warmly, "Yeah it's really the same colour." The girl giggled and placed it behind Kouki's ear, he blushed lightly. "It looks pretty on you Kouki-chan." The girl smiled brightly and ruffled his blonde messy hair playfully. Kouki and Ren knew each other since they were 5 years old and since that day they were inseparable. He normally didn't care for others but Ren was different. She is really important to him and the only friend he had.

"Hey how's your father doing?" she said seriously after a pause. "It's still…complicated." Kouki answered and she nodded understandably. She knew about everything his father did to him and she worried about her friend. "You can always stay with us if you want. Taichi's room is still empty so you could sleep there again if you want." "Thanks…but I stayed the last week at your house and I really don't want to be a burden. I'm sure I'm annoying your parents… I don't want to cause you more troubles than you already have."

"Don't say something like that! You're always welcome at our home! My parents love you anyway and they have already six children so I'm sure they won't complain about one more." Kouki chuckled lightly, "I still can't believe you have five siblings. I didn't even know my sister." The girl smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of her neck.

"Yeah and they cause a lot of trouble especially the twins. They are 5 years old and very active. And since my brother Taichi left to study Aina is the eldest one of us now and should normally take care of everyone but she's slightly overwhelmed." "She's going to be 16 soon, isn't she?" Ren nodded, "Yeah in exactly 4 days. And since Kenta didn't want to take care of the twins I have to do it. He's just one year younger than me but behaved like he's 8! And because of him the twins carved Aina's uniforms…I gave her mine because we have the same size and I have to wear Taichi's old one. I'm going to look like a boy. I just hope the teachers won't mind…" The girl sighed and Kouki smirked. "These children are real devils." Ren added. "If you need help with your siblings you can call me." Kouki suggested. "Thanks that's really kind of you…" she looked back at the sky. "And you know…if your father is doing this to you again…let me know…you're always welcome at our house..." She added uncharacteristically shyly and Kouki's orange eyes widened slightly.

She was a really good friend and he didn't want to lose her. She was like the sister he never gets the chance to know. He always wondered why his mother and sister had left him. And why had he stayed with his father? A violent alcoholic and choleric, who used to do a lot of awful things to Kouki.

"May I ask you something?" "Sure." Kouki answered. "Um…did you like the manga I made for your birthday?" The boy nodded. "Of course. The story was great and your skills are impressive." "Aw thanks Kouki-chan!" the girl pulled him into a bone crushing hug. "C-Can't b-br-breath!" "Oh sorry!" the girl pulled away with a sheepish smile. "You know my dream is to become a famous mangaka…I'm glad you like it!" she gave him a bright smile.

They stayed at the meadow for some more hours but the sun began to set and Ren sighed sadly. "We should better go...It's quite late. So are you coming with me?" she asked and stood up, adjusting her light blue summer dress. "I should better go back…" he stood up too. "Are you sure?" the girl placed her hand on his shoulder. "Yeah…It's better this way…Besides I should better hurry." he started to walk. "See you tomorrow Ren!" he waved quickly and then ran until Ren couldn't see him anymore. She remained there for a moment, with a sad expression on her face. "See you Kouki-chan…"

* * *

Ren sighed, "Keiko! Nori! Come back!" the girl chased after the twins who were running around the house leaving a mess behind them. "Aina help me!" "I'm trying!" the elder girl yelled and was about to catch her brother but he slid in between her legs. "Why are they always so hyperactive when Mom and Dad aren't home?" Ren said frustrated. "Kenta! Come here!" Aina shouted and the 13 years old boy came out of his room annoyed. "What?" "Catch Keiko she's running your direction!" "Nah…" he closed the door and the children continued to run happily. "I sometimes hate him…" Aina frowned and Ren chuckled. "Better leave him alone. He's suffering from his delayed puberty."

"Hey I heard that Ren!" the boy yelled from his room which caused the girls to laugh. After some more minutes of chasing the twins they were finally successful. "Got you!" Ren grabbed her little sister and picked her up and sat her down on her shoulders. "Number one is caught, now it's your turn Aina!" the elder girl nodded determined and could successfully corner her little brother. She picked him up too but he was more rebellious than his twin sister and he tried to free himself from the grip. "Not with me Nori! I'm stronger than I look." The girl grinned and the boy sighed, "That's unfair!" "No, it's not. You are going to bed now." "But we aren't sleepy!" her sister whined. "But mom said you should go to bed after your TV show." Ren explained and walked to the twins' room, Aina followed her. They sat up the children and helped them to get into their pyjamas. "Now go to sleep you two. Goodnight!" Ren closed the door behind her and she and Aina let out a long sigh. "I'm going into my room. If you need something just shout." Ren nodded. "I'm going to watch some TV. Mom and Dad are coming home later anyway. So I can watch my favourite Cartoon!"

"Aren't you too old for that?" her sister giggled. "I'm never too old for Powerpuff girls!" Ren chuckled and her sister walked down to her room. "Hey Kenta." Ren knocked on the door next to the twins' bedroom. "What?" the boy asked annoyed while opening the door. Ren could see he was playing a video game, he was really addicted to it. "Watch over the devils while I'm watching TV." The boy rolled his eyes, he had the same emerald ones like Ren. "Fine." He finally answered and closed the door. "Thanks Kenta-chan!" the girl giggled. "Don't call me like that!" Ren walked into the living room with a smirk and turned on the TV. She lay down on the comfortable couch and watched her favourite childhood cartoon. Her eyelids felt heavier until her eyes were closed. Today was an exciting and exhausting day and she was asleep immediately without noticing it. The same moment the twins crept out of their room, because they couldn't find any sleep. Kenta was preoccupied in his game and Aina was listening to some music, so they didn't hear them leaving their room. Ren was soon in dreamland while her siblings were making trouble again.

* * *

Kouki opened the door and entered the flat. He had an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach and didn't like the silence. As he carefully walked to his room he suddenly heard a voice behind him, "Where were you?" it was deep and monotone. Kouki froze, fear filled his body and he didn't turn around. "I was out." "Why are you so late?" "I forgot the time." "You have school tomorrow, go to bed." "I know. I'm not stupid!" Kouki answered angrily feeling somehow braver. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his head and a loud clap. "Don't be so rude to me. I'm your father!" Kouki could smell the alcohol from his breath and suppressed his tears.

He turned around and faced his father. He was a tall, muscular man, who had short blonde hair and piercing grey eyes. Kouki was about to say something, but couldn't. "Forgot how to speak?" his father smirked. "Leave me alone!" Kouki yelled and ran to his room but he was suddenly grabbed by his arm. "Don't you dare talking to me this way! I'll show you some respect!" Kouki's eyes widened, he knew what his father meant. "No! Please not the-"

"Too late, son!" Kouki's father dragged him through the room. He opened a door which lead into the basement and nudged him into it. "No!" Kouki yelled again tears now rolling down his cheeks. He tried to free himself but failed. His father showed no mercy and slammed the door shut. The basement was dark, there was no light in it, not a single candle or lamp was illuminating the room.

Kouki fell to the ground, he felt weak. More tears were rolling down and he was afraid. He was alone in the dark. It was his worst fear since he was younger and these punishments started. "I hate the dark…" Kouki whispered and closed his eyes, he couldn't see anything anyway. He didn't notice he felt asleep on the cold floor while hot tears were warming his face.

* * *

The door was thrown open and a tall man stood in the doorframe. "Did you learn your lesson?" his dark voice asked and Kouki nodded weakly while waking up slowly. "It's 6 in the morning, get ready for school." Kouki nodded again and head into his room. There he prepared himself for the day. He felt miserable and was happy he could get out of this house now. He took everything he needed for today and left without saying a word to his father.

Outside he took a deep breath and suppressed his emotions and feelings. He was looking forward to see Ren and being far away from this man. He thought about running away from home very often but he never did, because he hoped that his mother will come back one day to take him with her. Far away from this man he once called father. He didn't want to think about what happened anymore and shook his head. He slowly calmed down from the shock and took long deep breaths. He felt better and he was sure that after talking with Ren he will be fine, she always made him smile and laugh.

When he reached the school he noticed an unknown student waiting at the spot where he always met Ren. 'Who is that boy?' he asked himself and stepped closer. He had emerald eyes and short ruby hair. 'Wait. He looks like-' "H-Hey Kouki." The student waved shyly when they noticed him and Kouki recognized them immediately. It was Ren! "R-Ren? Wh-What happened?" he asked in shock and eyed her hair. It was as short and messy as his own hair. She scratched her head with a sheepish smile.

"Yeah…a small accident happened." "What do you mean?" he was still shocked. "Oh, it's nothing tragic." She said calmly and waved her hands in front of her still smiling sheepishly. "The twins found it funny to stuck their sweets and gums into my hair while I was accidently asleep on the couch. It was really hard to get rid of these things. You have no idea how hard it is to remove a sticky lollipop which is tangled in your hair." She chuckled but looked away slightly sad. "So I had to cut it. I know it will grow back but now…I really look like a boy."

"You still look pretty." Kouki said with a small blush and the girl smiled warmly. "Thanks Kouki-chan…Next time I should be more careful when I take a nap!" she chuckled and Kouki was amazed by her optimism. "How was your day yesterday?" she asked now more seriously. "I'll better tell you everything later…" the girl nodded understandably and knew she should help him to get his mind off his problems now. "Hey I heard there are a few new students. Maybe we'll get along with them and become friends?" the girl smiled and the boy nodded lightly. "Yeah…I hope they aren't some snobs or something like that." He added with a weak smirk. "Let's head in now! We're going to be late!" the girl grabbed Kouki's hand and they entered the building.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

 **A/N: Sorry for any language and grammar mistakes! Besides I wasn't sure in which town Noragami was set and couldn't find it anywhere so I'm sorry if I made a mistake here! This story is now set in Tokyo...Hope you like it ^^**

"Hey my timetable isn't that bad. I have art classes now that's awesome!" Ren said while walking down the hallway with Kouki. "Are we still in the same art course?" she asked and the boy looked back at his timetable they just received. "I'm afraid not…I have geography now." He sighed. "That's boring." The bell rang which signalized them to go to their classes. "Better go now before we are late." Ren chuckled, "Let's meet here at the lockers at lunch break!" she added and waved while running down the hall.

Kouki waved back and turned his heel. When he headed down to his classroom he spotted Mika Hamasaki. They went to the same Math class the last year and he always felt strange when he saw her. She was a rather small girl with raven hair which was made in a ponytail, her bangs are slightly parted to the right cascading down each side of her face and stopping around her chin. He never really talked to her, he was too shy and not the type of boy who could talk to girls easily, except Ren. Kouki quickly glanced over to Mika while he was still walking and suddenly his orange eyes met her bright turquoise ones.

He quickly looked away feeling his face heating up. Kouki's steps were faster now and he sighed in relief when he entered his class. He sat down on a free seat next to the window and waited until his subject was over. Most of the time, he looked out of the window bored or at the clock on the wall. His teacher asked him some random questions about the capitals of European countries which he sometimes could answer correctly but he felt denounced in front of his class. Kouki wasn't stupid; he was just bored that his teachers weren't even trying to make the lesson more interesting. Besides it was difficult for him to study for an exam under the present circumstances at his home.

Finally the bell rang and Kouki opened his eyes slowly. He had closed them for the last 10 minutes and luckily the teacher didn't notice it. He stood up from his seat and put his things back into his backpack while the other students were leaving. "Wakahisa-kun, may I talk to you for a moment?" the teacher suddenly said and Kouki looked back at her, "Of course." He mumbled and stepped closer to her. "I don't want to intervene in your private situation, but you seem differently than before the holidays. Are you sleeping enough? Or is there something else that bothers you?" she asked worried and Kouki shook his head. "No everything is fine." "Are you sure?" the boy nodded. "I just go too late to bed because I'm playing a new videogame." He lied and his teacher raised a brow. "I don't get this. Why are you teenager so obsessed with these videogames?" Kouki shrugged, "I don't know. But I'll stop it and go to sleep way sooner now." "I hope so. You are dismissed." Kouki nodded and walked out of the classroom.

It wasn't the first time a teacher asked about the situation at his home but he always lied, telling them some random excuse. He didn't want them to know about his problems with his father. Kouki never wanted to be treated differently than the others. He was sure there were students with problems much worse than his and he didn't want to be pampered by the teachers. He had enough problems with other students and didn't need more. The boy tried to think about something else while he headed to the lockers where Ren wanted to meet him. She was probably waiting for him so he hurried a bit. The hallway was empty because everyone was already outside or in the cafeteria. He would soon arrive the meeting place but suddenly a voice stopped him in his tracks, "Hey Wakahisa!"

Kouki turned around when he heard his surname be called, to see a boy around his age. His orange eyes widened slightly, it wasn't an ordinary boy. His name was Daiki Yamada, the one who bullied him sice 4 months without a real reason. Kouki didn't tell Ren about it yet because he knew she would worry about him and he didn't want to burden her with his problems. "Where are you going?" "I-It's n-none of your business!" Kouki said but was angry with himself because he failed not to stutter. The other boy who was taller than Kouki grinned evilly and grabbed the blonde boy by his collar. Unfortunately the hallway was still empty so nobody was there to help him. "Are you giving me your money now or shall I do it the hard way like last time?" Kouki's eyes widened as he remembered his last encounter with Daiki. It ended with Kouki having a bloody nose and a lot of bruises. Kouki didn't say a word nor did he react which made the other boy impatient. "I'm waiting!" He threw the blonde boy against the lockers, still holding him by the collar. Kouki suppressed a cry of pain when Daiki hit him right into his stomach. He was too shocked and paralysed by the pain to say a word and the bully was about to hit him again.

"Hey! Stop that!" Daiki jumped and stopped, turning his head. "Leave him alone!" The boy suddenly felt someone grabbing him by the collar and he let go of Kouki. The blonde boy fell to the ground and looked up to see Ren glaring at Daiki whom she held tightly in her grip. "If you touch him ever again you'll have the pleasure to get my fist into your face! Or do you want a foretaste now?" Daiki's dark eyes widened and he went pale. "Ren! It's ok let him go!" Kouki shouted weakly and stood up. The girl suddenly noticed she had gone too far. She let go of the boy who quickly stepped back from the two.

"You're lucky that this boy was there to save you Wakahisa! We'll see us again!" the student ran away. "Hey I'm not a boy!" Ren shouted angrily and then turned to Kouki, her eyes softened immediately. "I'm sorry Kouki…I can't control my protective instinct sometimes…Are you ok?" He looked away ashamed. "Hey look at me." She said gently and the boy looked up at her, she was a bit taller than him, almost 2 inches and his orange eyes met her emerald ones.

"It…It wasn't the first time that this boy threatened you, was it?" Kouki stared at her for a brief moment before looking back at the ground, shaking his head. "No…it wasn't the first time…" he said quietly. "W-Why haven't you told me about that?" she put her hand on his shoulder and he looked back at her, suppressing tears. "B-Because I'm already pathetic enough! I can't even defend myself! I always need someone who rescues me and even you as a girl are stronger than me!" Ren felt slightly hurt and Kouki's eyes widened. "I-I'm s-sorry Ren! I didn't mean to insult you…I just…" She gave him a warm smile, she understood what he meant. "It's ok…"

"I'm just…a pathetic worm who can't even defend himself from a dumb student nor his own father." Now a tear was rolling down his cheek and Ren quickly pulled him into a hug. "You are not pathetic Kouki!" she spoke softly, "You are a great person. You are my best friend. And you had rescued me from bullies, too. Remember?" "But that was before my father…" he made a long pause. "Since he started with these punishments…I changed. I'm not brave anymore." He said sadly and disappointed. "In my opinion you are still a hero…" the girl said gently. Kouki's eyes widened and the girl gave him a compassionate glance. He wiped away his tears and gulped. "I hate to cry in front of you…It's embarrassing." he mumbled and she shook her head.

"Hey, I'm like your sister, there's no need to be embarrassed of anything. Besides…Don't suppress your emotions and feelings. Let them out and don't let others treat you like you were worthless. Because you're not!" her words touched him. "Thanks Ren…for everything." She smiled and hugged him again, "No problem at all Kouki-chan! Don't forget, your sister Ren-chan is there for you if you need something or want to talk!" he chuckled and she sighed silently in relief, happy that he calmed down and felt better.

"Let's go to the cafeteria before the others ate all the sandwiches!" The boy nodded with a smile and tried to forget about his problem. Together they headed down the hallway to the cafeteria. The girl told Kouki a story about her siblings and she didn't pay attention to where she was going. When they turned a corner, Ren suddenly bumped into something hard. She looked up and gasped. In front of her was a tall boy with short dark brown hair and bright blue eyes. He was like two heads taller than Ren and her emeraldeyes widened even more. "Woah! You are a giant!" she exclaimed and the boy's eyes widened while he shifted nervously, he was overwhelmed and didn't know what to say now.

Ren noticed that, "Oh sorry! I didn't mean to insult you! This was a compliment!" she smiled. "I wish I could be that tall." Now the boy was blushing. "Th-Thank you…" he stuttered with a small smile. "This is Kouki," she pointed at the blonde boy who eyed the new student curiously. "And My name is Ren. I know it's a boyish name but I'm a girl by the way." "I-I would never think you're a boy! Y-You are too pretty to be a boy. I-I mean..." he stuttered. "Aw that's sweet of you!" the tall boy blushed again. "Are you new here?" Kouki asked. The tall boy nodded. "M-My name is Hideaki. I'm from Kyoto and moved here with my mother after my parents' divorce." 'I'm sure he had also a hard life. His parents probably fight very often and they even had to be separated so far away from each other…' Kouki thought. "Oh…that sounds sad…" Ren said while Hideaki shook his head lightly. "I'm glad we're here now, it's much more peaceful at home now."

"We're going to eat something in the cafeteria. Do you want to accompany us?" Kouki asked, normally he was carefully with meeting new people but this boy didn't seem to be a bully or a bad person so Kouki wanted to gave him a chance. Besides he knew how it is to be new somewhere and this boy could need some friends, too. Hideaki nodded with a smile. "I'd be glad to. I haven't found anyone who would talk to me yet. It's like it was at my school in Kyoto. Everyone was somehow afraid of me because of my height but I would never harm anyone!" Ren smiled gently. "Kouki and I know how it is to be an outsider."

"Somehow the others never wanted to talk to us; maybe we aren't as cool as them." Kouki added and looked away. "We don't need them." Hideaki said with a closed-eyed smile. "We are much cooler than they are." Ren added with a bright smile. "Aren't we Kouki?" the blonde boy smiled warmly and nodded. "We are." "Now let's go to the cafeteria!" Ren said joyfully and they headed down the hall to the cafeteria.

"So tell us something about you Hideaki." Ren said biting into her sandwich and the boy looked up shyly. "I-I moved here a few days ago with my mother while my sister Youko stayed at Kyoto with my father." "Didn't she want to come with you?" Kouki asked and tried to hide his feelings now. Ren glanced at him; she immediately knew why he was asking. "No. She wanted to stay with him because she never gets along with my mother. Besides she didn't want to leave her school." Hideaki explained rather sadly and Kouki nodded.

"Sorry I didn't mean to be curious." "No it's fine. I still try to keep contact with them and visit them from time to time." He smiled and Ren noticed he had dimples which she found adorable. "And what are your hobbies?" she asked and Hideaki blushed slightly. He was rather shy especially when he was talking to a girl. "Um I like to read, doing some sports…and i-in Kyoto I used to teach some children a few tricks in hand in hand combat after school, so they could defend themselves and prevent the worst…" "Really?" Ren's eyes widened in amazement. "That's impressive!" Kouki exclaimed and Hideaki scratched his head sheepishly. "Thanks...I think it's important that children can defend themselves." Kouki's eyes widened for a second but he quickly but a poker face on. "That's true…" he added.

"Do you already know what you want to do after school?" Ren asked changing the topic after noticing Kouki's reaction. Hideaki shifted nervously. "…It sounds stupid…but I really like to cook and I-I would like to become a chef…" He confessed and waited for them to laugh at him like others always did before. "Wow! That's awesome!" Ren exclaimed and Hideaki looked up into her eyes, feeling his face heating up.

"You're not laughing?" "Why should we?" Kouki asked and tilted his head. "I-I thought you would think strangely of me." Ren shook her head, "I want to become a mangaka and Kouki thinks about becoming an author or a therapist." "Or a lawyer…I haven't decided yet." He chuckled sheepishly and Hideaki smiled. He was accepted how he was and felt very comfortable around the two students although they meet today.

They spend the whole lunch break at the cafeteria and got to know each other. After the bell rang they went back to their classrooms and there they found out they had some classes together. After school the three of them strolled around the town before going home and really enjoyed the time together. Hideaki was just like Ren and Kouki, an outsider who finally found some people who understood him and Kouki was sure they'll some became good friends.

* * *

Kouki lay in his bed. His father was probably at the bar again and the boy sighed in relief. He stared at his ceiling and thought about his day. He didn't know why but he suddenly thought about the day he met Ren. The girl was new in the neighbourhood and it was hard for her to make new friends because she was really shy when she was younger. One day she was at the playground not far away from the houses and some children were teasing her and threw balls at her which made her cry immediately.

"Look at this cry-baby! Just because she's new we should be nice to her, Mommy said, but it's more fun doing this!" a boy laughed wickedly and threw the ball. The girl covered her face with her hands and waited for the pain, but it never came. Hesitantly she took her hands away from her face and suddenly saw a blonde boy, standing protectively in front of her. Her emerald eyes widened, "Y-You saved me!" she exclaimed but it was not louder than a whisper.

"Hey! You're ruining the fun!" the boy who had thrown the ball yelled and some other children complained too. "Leave her alone! She did nothing to you!" "And what if we won't?" another child said and it made the blonde boy angry. He took the ball which hit him and the children flinched, some even run away. He was about to throw it but stopped while shaking his head. "I'm not like you! Now I know why I never want to become friends with you, because you are cowards!" he let the ball fell on the ground and looked at the ruby haired girl with a genuine smile. "Are you ok?" he asked and she nodded. "Do you want to come with me? We could play somewhere else. Besides we don't need these cowards." The girl nodded again and followed the boy while the other children who were still there watched them shocked.

"Thank you! That was really brave of you!" the girl smiled brightly, some of her milk teeth were already gone and it made the boy chuckle. "I'm Kouki and you?" He asked with an eye-closed smile. "I'm Ren! Hey you know what?" her emerald eyes widened suddenly. "You remind me of Link! You are as brave as him! You must be a hero!" the boy blushed slightly. "I-I'm not a hero…" he answered shyly. "I had some problems with these children too when I was new here. I know them too well."

"In my opinion you are still a hero!" Ren smiled again and they strolled around the neighbourhood. They talked for a long while and they decided to discover the small woods not far from their houses. "Hey what's that!" the girl pointed at something and ran as fast as she could. "Ren wait!" Kouki ran after her and suddenly they were at a bright green meadow, no one else was there and there were colourful flowers everywhere. "Wow! This place is amazing!" they said in unison. This was the day they found their favourite place on earth and it was also the moment when their friendship began.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

 **A/N: Sorry for any language and grammar mistakes! Thanks for reviews, faving & following my story! I really appreciate it ****:3 The next chapter will be a more cheerful! Hope you like it ^^**

A few days passed, Kouki and Ren got along very well with Hideaki and even spent every lunch break together, joking around or talking about school and other things. The tall boy was at first rather reserved but he became more talkative and comfortable around the two. They had a lot in common and walked home together after school because they virtually walk the same way. Ren was always the first one who reached her house and after saying goodbye to her friends Hideaki and Kouki continue on their way home while talking about random things until they reach Kouki's house. After the boys separated, Kouki felt always lonely and wished he could spend more time outside his home with his friends.

He hesitantly opened the door of the flat and headed to his room. His father wasn't at home again and he took the chance to make his homework and watch some TV when he finished. The hours passed by and when Kouki heard the door handle moving, he jumped up from the couch in the living room, turning off the TV and ran back to his room. There he closed the door behind him. He leaned against the wall and stayed quiet to hear what his father was doing now. After some minutes he became impatient.

'Why is he taking so long? Shouldn't he finally go to his bedroom to sleep it off?' Kouki thought annoyed, now sitting down on his bed. His orange eyes widened when his father suddenly opened his door and stormed into his room. "I'm back…What are you doing?" the man asked, clearly drunk. "I'm reading." Kouki quickly grabbed a book which lay on his bed and showed it to his father. His father snorted in respond, "You can read as much as you want, your grades are still awful. You are dumb, get over it!"

Kouki gritted his teeth, "My grades are just bad because I can't concentrate when you are always drunk and-" "Are you raising your voice again?" His father interrupted him and raised a warning finger. Kouki flinched slightly but remained calm. "Do you want me to let you stay in the basement again?" The man stepped closer while Kouki didn't respond and watched his action. "Do you?!" his father yelled and grabbed Kouki's arms violently. He dug his nails in the boy's arms. Kouki suppress a cry of pain and immediately tried to free himself from the grip. "L-Let me go!" the blonde boy shouted angrily while his father smirked. "You're so weak, that's pathetic." He threw Kouki back on the floor and turned to leave the room.

"You're not even worth the trouble you cause." He added and left while slamming the door behind him. Kouki stood up carefully, feeling a pain in his arms as he moved. He remained silent and looked at the ground until his gaze wandered through his room. He stopped at the small mirror which was hanging next to his door and he just stared at the blonde boy with orange eyes and felt disgusted. He stepped closer to the mirror and stopped right in front of it, his eyes never leaving the reflection.

'I am pathetic…' he thought and suddenly slammed his fist against the mirror. It didn't break but it attracted the attention of his father. The man was still in the living room and didn't seem to be as drunk as Kouki thought at first. The boy heard steps coming closer and cursed to himself for being so unwary.

"What are you doing in here, idiot?" his father yelled and opened the door to the Kouki's room. "You are such a pain for me. I wish your mother had taken you with her! I don't need you, you're good for nothing!" Kouki suddenly felt a sharp pain in his cheek and he suppressed his tears. Ren's words echoed in his head, 'Don't let others treat you like you were worthless. Because you're not!'

Kouki's eyes widened and he looked back at his father, who was about to hit him again. 'I won't be pathetic anymore! I can defend myself and fight him too!' he thought determined and managed to maintain his composure. But his father noticed his fury anyway and chuckled contemptuously, "What's wrong with you, idiot?" "Stop calling me that!" Kouki answered and he glared at the man hatefully.

"I'm not worthless!" the boy yelled and adrenaline filled his body when lunged at the man. He grabbed his strong arms and held them in place while his father tried to free himself from the grip. "What are you trying to do? Are you really so naïve and think you got a chance against me? Your own father?" The man shouted his face red from anger. Suddenly his father caught Kouki off guard and stepped on the boy's foot vigorously which made him loosening the grip on the man's arms.

His father took this opportunity and grabbed his son by the collar and threw him against a wall. The boy cried in pain and felt how his limp body fell to the ground. "You messed up with the wrong one, boy." Kouki's body was paralysed and his orange eyes widened when he saw his father stepping closer to him. He kicked the poor boy whose tears were rolling down his face again.

"I'm afraid you need some time in the basement again." he added and kicked his son into the stomach. "N-No! P-P-Please…" Kouki whined and was disgusted of himself. His father grabbed him forcefully by the arm again and shoved him into the basement. Kouki hadn't the strength to fight back or flee so he landed on the cold hard floor of the basement while his father threw the doors shut. Kouki's body was too weak to stand up so he remained on the floor. "I failed…" he whispered hopeless. "I'm a fool…" he closed his eyes and carefully sat up, hugging his knees to comfort himself. 'I hate the dark…so much…' he thought and tried his best to ignore the fact, that he was in the dark basement again.

He remained like this for two hours until his father opened the door. "You can go to your bed now." Kouki looked up surprised and didn't know how to react. "Do you want to stay here?" his father asked angrily and Kouki quickly jumped up to walk out of the basement. "Be a good boy and stop pissing me off so you needn't to go to the basement again. Understood?" the boy nodded without looking at his father and walked to his room.

Kouki waited for the man to go to sleep and when it happened, he quickly took out his backpack and stuffed it with some cloths and other things he might needed. He even took a flashlight with him, he really couldn't stand the darkness. He was glad he had a small lamp in his room which was always illuminating his room, even when he was sleeping. Kouki couldn't fall asleep in his dark room so he took care that the lamp will always give him light.

As he bumped into the door of his wardrobe he left open while packing his things, he suddenly felt the pain in his arm again. He carefully touched the spot and flinched again. Kouki remembered what his father did just a few hours ago and undresses his jacket and shirt to reveal his arms which were covered in bruises. His orange eyes widened. 'I never thought that it would look so bad!' he quickly searched for the first aid kit he hide under his bed and took out some bandages. He needed this first aid kit since his mother left because his father was never going easy on him. Now he wrapped the bandages around his arms after rubbing some cream into his skin to soothe it.

He looked at his work with a sad smile. Tomorrow he is going to have physical educations and he didn't want anyone to see his bruises. He decided that he would tell his classmates he had a small accident with his bike but nothing serious, just a few scratches. Although he knew that the other students will laugh at him for being so stupid and fell from a bike but he didn't care right now. Kouki dressed back into his clothes and took the prepared backpack which he now threw over his shoulders. He stepped closer to the door, his hand reached for the handle, his heart beating faster, but then he stopped.

'If I go now…I would be a major coward.' He looked down at the floor. 'I would just run away from my problems but that's not what I want…' he threw his backpack next his bed. 'Besides…Where shall I stay? I don't want to bother Ren or Hideaki…' he let himself fall onto the bed and he stared at the ceiling with a sigh. 'And what if…what if my mother will be coming back to take me with her? What if my father is calling her now to take me because I'm a burden for him anyway?' he closed his eyes slowly. 'What if…?' He couldn't finish his thought because he fell asleep, while his lamp was illuminating his room during the night.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

 **A/N: Sorry for any language and grammar mistakes! And I'm really sorry for being so slow with this chapter! Thank you so much for your reviews they motivate me a lot! :D I hope you like it ^^**

Kouki ran through the long hallway, his steps echoing behind him and he breathed heavily. He was late and feared his teacher's reaction. He had forgotten to set his alarm clock and his father was already gone to work when Kouki woke up. His body was still hurting with every move he made, but he tried his best to stand the pain.

"Long time no see…" A familiar voice said and Kouki froze. 'No! Please not now!' he thought desperately. Suddenly he felt someone grabbing his shoulder harshly and turned him around. The blonde boy was now facing the one student he tried to avoid the past days. "W-What do you want Daiki?" Kouki asked and glared at the boy, trying to look brave but deep inside, his heart was racing out of fear. "What's up Wakahisa? Aren't you happy to see me?" Daiki chuckled darkly and took a step closer to the boy. He then lifted his fist and was about to hit Kouki but the blonde student could dodge in the last second and felt the draught of Daiki's fast movement near his face. Kouki panicked but also noticed that the bully was surprised by his action and took his chance to run as fast as he could.

'I have no chance against him! I failed the last time I tried to be strong and brave…I have to flee like a coward.' he thought, while running as fast as he could and hating himself for acting like this right now. Kouki felt the adrenaline rushing through his veins when he heard Daiki running right behind him and shouting angrily. "Come back you coward!" Kouki turned a corner and hoped that anyone would be there but the hall was empty like the others before.

'I can't keep running! My legs are burning and I'm too weak to fight him!' He thought desperately. His orange eyes widened when he noticed the boy's bathrooms being right in front of him. He managed to reach the door handle at the right moment and shut it right after he entered it to have some more time. Then he quickly ran into one of the cabins and locked it. He was breathing heavily and jumped when he heard Daiki entering the bathroom too and slamming his fist against the cabin's door where Kouki was in. He was saved for a moment but still feared the door will cease during Daiki's strokes.

"Come out you damn coward!" Kouki closed the lid of the toilet bowl and sat down on it. He hugged his knees close to him and hanged his head in shame. The bully was kicking and punching against the door and won't let go. "I'll get you Wakahisa! Don't believe you can hide in there forever!" Kouki's eyes filled with tears of desperation, fear and shame.

Meanwhile Hideaki was in his chemistry class when he suddenly dropped a test tube which he could however catch in the last second before it crashed on the floor. But the liquid was leaked all over his hands. It wasn't poisoned or dangerous but his hands were very sticky and dirty. His teacher allowed him to go to the bathroom to wash his hands, so he made his way through the silent halls when he suddenly heard a yelling coming from the boy's bathroom.

He curiously opened the door and his blue eyes widened when he saw Daiki hitting the door of one of the cabins. "Hey! What are you doing?" Hideaki asked sternly and glared at the smaller boy. "None of your damn business, you whopper!" Daiki replied and the tall boy got angry, "If I were you I wouldn't mess up with me boy."

Suddenly he heard a whimper coming from the cabin Daiki was trying to open and Hideaki recognized it. 'Kouki?' he thought shocked and turned back to the bully, "Go back to your class. Or do you want me to drag you there?" The dark haired boy looked up at Hideaki, slight fear was noticeable on his face. Normally Hideaki would never say or do something like that but he knew that it was the only way to get Daiki out of the bathroom and help Kouki.

Daiki looked away and then headed to the door to leave the bathroom but stopped in front of it, "Did you send your giant because you are too small to fight me alone?" He added mockingly and this comment really hurt Kouki, he was very sensitive when it comes to his height. "Just leave now." Hideaki said coldly and sighed in relief when Daiki was finally gone. 'Never thought that I can be that stern and cold…But this boy didn't deserve it any better…'

Hideaki suddenly heard a 'click' and looked back at the cabin. It opened and revealed Kouki who had tears in his eyes and a red face. Hideaki's eyes widened, "Kouki! Are you alright?" The blonde student nodded. "Yeah…I'm fine." He rubbed his arms and flinched slightly.

Hideaki noticed that and was concerned about his friend. "Are you hurt? Shall I bring you to the infirmary?" he proposed but Kouki shook his head. "But why?" Hideaki asked and tilted his head. "Because…I don't want them to know…" Kouki looked away with a sad expression.

"Know what?" Hideaki asked again but now more careful. "That…" Kouki gulped, "That my father is treating me like shit!" He yelled and more tears ran down his cheeks. Hideaki froze, he never thought that Kouki had such a problem at home, he never showed or talked about it when they saw each other. Besides Hideaki didn't even know that Daiki was bulling his friend.

"Does your father…beat you?" Hideaki asked hesitated and Kouki nodded. "And I'm too weak to defend myself…I tried it the last time but failed…Daiki is right…I'm a damn coward!" Kouki shouted, again and was overwhelmed by his feeling. He wiping his tears away angrily and was still disappointed of himself.

Hideaki shook his head. "You're not a coward…I-I can show you some hand to hand combat if you want, so you could defend yourself in case of…you know if something like that happen again and no one is there." Hideaki smiled weakly and Kouki looked up at him, "R-Really?" he asked in a now calm voice.

The tall boy nodded, "But you have to promise me that you will only use it to defend yourself and not for starting a fight." Kouki's eyes lit up, "I promise! And I even know a place where we could practise!" he was suddenly feeling enthusiastic and wilful to learn these tricks and finally being able to defend himself. Hideaki chuckled, "Great. Let's meet at the lockers after school." "Thanks Hideaki!" The blonde student smiled and the tall one nodded. "No problem. But we should better head back to our classes before we get into trouble."

So the boy's way separated and after a few minutes Kouki arrived at his classroom. When he opened the door all eyes were on him. "Wakahisa-kun, you're 30 minutes late!" his teacher scolded him in front of his class and his cheeks turned pink in embarrassment. "I hope you have a plausible excuse for that!" the boy shook his head, "I-I overslept. I'm really sorry sensei-"

"Go out for 10 minutes!" the teacher interrupted and Kouki obeyed with an annoyed sigh and rolled his eyes. He didn't complain because he knew that it wouldn't make sense anyway. His teacher is very strict and stubborn, besides he didn't want to go to the school director. Outside he waited for the 10 minutes to fly past but it felt like he was standing there for hours.

'I can't wait to learn those tricks in hand-to-hand combat…Finally I won't be weak anymore!' he thought and jumped slightly when the door opened again.

His teacher let him enter but not before scolding him again. Kouki ignored it and walked to his seat, but on his way his eyes met suddenly a pair of turquoise ones which looked at him sympathetically. 'M-Mika is in my history class?' he thought in shock and quickly looked away. He hadn't noticed her before. 'Great…I disgraced myself in front of her…Wait. I-It's not that I like her or anything.' He quickly said to himself, he won't admit that he might have a tiny crush on the raven haired girl. He sat down on his seat next the window and waited for the school day to end so he could meet Hideaki at the lockers.

* * *

Finally Kouki's last lesson ended and he stormed out of his classroom. He made his way to the lockers and waited there impatiently for his friend. He was lost in thoughts and suddenly two hands were covering his eyes. He jumped heavily and heard a familiar laugh behind him. "Aw Kouki-chan you are such a scaredy cat!" Kouki turned around and saw Ren and he chuckled about his reaction.

"You just caught me off guard!" he explained. "Are you waiting for someone?" she asked and put a book out of her bag to place it into her locker. "Yeah…I'm waiting for Hideaki. He wants to show me a few hand-to-hand combat moves." Ren's emerald eyes widened. "That's sounds cool! May I join you? I would like to know some tricks too!" The girl said with a bright smile and hit her fists through the air playfully.

He decided to never tell Ren what happened this day. He was still too ashamed of it, 'I didn't want her to know that I'm such a coward…' he through sadly but hided his feelings with a smile and nodded. "Of course!"

"Hey! Sorry for being late." Hideaki ran to his friends and scratched his neck sheepishly. At first he didn't notice Ren but when he did, he blushed immediately. "Hey Hideaki-chan! May I join you two today?" the girl asked happily and the boy gave her an eye-closed smile, which made his dimples appear on his cheeks. "Sure!"

"Now let's go!" Kouki said determined and head out of the building, he was really excited and it helped him to forget about today's incident.

They walked down the street and headed to the meadow where Kouki and Ren always met. The blonde boy decided it was time to show this place to their new friend Hideaki too. As they were passing some houses and cars Ren's stomach started to grumble loudly and she blushed while her eyes widened. The boys chuckled. "Sorry… My little sister ate my breakfast and I haven't had the time to make me a new one. I thought my stomach would withstand till supper." She explained slightly embarrassed.

"You can have my lunch if you want. I wasn't really hungry today and I would be glad to help you." Hideaki smiled warmly.

"Is that really ok with you?" The tall boy nodded and Ren's eyes filled with glee, "Aw that's so kind of you! Thanks!"

The boy blushed and scratched his neck sheepishly. "N-No problem a-at all." He searched inside his bag for his lunch and handed it to the ruby haired girl. It was a typical Japanese bento with rice balls, some vegetables, fruits and sushi. "Wow it looks tasty! Did you make it yourself?" Hideaki nodded shyly.

"That's awesome!" Ren took the chopsticks which were also placed into the bento and enjoyed the delicious meal. "Mm…Tasty!" she said with her mouth full of rice and Hideaki smiled happily about her response.

After a few minutes of walking they finally arrived the woods and soon the meadow. Hideaki gasped and was fascination of the view in front of him. "That's the place Kouki-chan and I use to visit to relax or be far away from all these problems…" Ren said and ate the last strawberry.

"Thank you again Hideaki! I owe you something!" the girl smiled and gave him the now empty box. He blushed again and put it back into his bag. "N-No need. Really." Ren was about to answer but Kouki interrupted her.

"Ok, so show me some moves!" he said eagerly and threw his back on the meadow. The other two copied his action and Hideaki prepared himself while Ren sat down on the meadow for the moment. "Ok. First of all you have to expect the other one to do everything to catch you off guard. So be prepared for everything and be focused on his moves." The brunette explained while Kouki listened closely. He gave the blonde boy some more instructions and then he showed him the first move.

"Use the heel of your palm to strike up under your attacker's nose." He carefully held his palm against Kouki's nose. "Like this. And then you have to throw the whole weight of your body into the move to force him to loosen the grip on you." Kouki nodded, "Understood."

Hideaki took a step back to explain the next move. "When someone tries to hit you," he lifted his fist and then continued, "You have to catch it in the right moment and twist it so you can spin your attacker around and even pin him to the ground. Let's try it!" Hideaki encouraged him and they practised this attack for a few times.

After showing Kouki more tricks and moves which they practised intensively the tall boy decided that he was ready. Ren followed every move with interest and smiled when she saw Kouki's happy face after he could do it correctly.

"You learn very fast! You should practise every day, so you won't forget it." Hideaki told him and Kouki nodded. "I will! Thank you, Hideaki. You really helped me." The blonde boy bowed in respect. "You're welcome Kouki!"

"Hideaki?" Ren stood up and walked to the tall boy. "Could you show me some moves too?" she asked happily and Hideaki's cheeks turned pink. "Y-Yes! Of course! Um...may I?" He moved his hands to hers but didn't touch them because he waited for her reply. "Sure no need to be shy it's just me." She chuckled and he gently took her hands, one placing on his chest and the other one under his arm.

"Now you have to turn so your back is facing your attacker without letting go of him and then you have to throw him over your shoulder. This move is called O Goshi." Hideaki was about to took a step back and let Kouki train with her because he was afraid he would hurt her because of his height and weight but he was caught off guard when Ren threw him over her shoulder easily.

"Like this?" she asked with a smile, looking down at Hideaki who lay on the ground and whose blue eyes were widely open. He was quiet shocked and really impressed. "T-That was very good!" The girl smiled brightly.

Kouki was now sitting at the meadow and thought about every move again. He was determined to practise every day. 'Now I can defend myself! I won't be pathetic anymore nor a coward! But I have to remember what Hideaki had told me. I gave him my promise and will use this tricks only to defend myself! Finally I can have a better life…'

* * *

The time flew by very quickly and after some more practising; the three friends were now laying on the fresh green grass, staring at the sky. They were talking when suddenly a melody interrupted them. "Oh, I'm sorry! I'm sure that's Aina." Ren excused and pulled her mobile phone out of her jacket pocket and answered it, "Hey Aina!" her facial expression became quite sad. "Really? Ok I'm there in 10 minutes. See you!"

The boys eyed her curiously. "What happened?" Kouki asked and tilted his head. "Oh it's nothing," she smiled. "I just have to go home to help Aina with the devils again; she has to do her homework and can't leave them alone." She quickly stood up and adjusted her uniform, which was still her brother's uniform. She took her bag, waved in farewell, "It was a lot of fun with you two! See you guys at school tomorrow!" she gave them a smile and left the meadow.

The boys waved back and looked after her. They then decided to leave too and on their way home they were conversing about school and other things. "Um…Kouki?" the tall brunette asked while the other one looked up at him. "Yeah?"

"Just out of curiosity, do you have a crush on someone?" Hideaki asked and the other boy blushed. "Wh-What? N-No!" he denied and the tall boy smirked. "So there is someone? What's her name?" Kouki looked away, "It's no one!" "C'mon, you can tell me." Hideaki teased slightly and the blonde gave up. "Ok…It's Mika Hamasaki…"

Hideaki smirked even wider, "Then tell her." "What? No! Fat chance!" Kouki shook his head. "Why not?" Hideaki asked. "She will laugh at me." Kouki looked at the ground with a small pout.

"I'm sure she won't. Besides you should tell her before its too late! We never know what will happen to us. So we should take the chance now!" The tall boy encouraged his friend who still was avoiding his eyes.

"What's about you? Do you have a crush on someone?" Kouki asked curiously and Hideaki shifted nervously. "I-I'm not sure yet because I don't know this person very long but I feel very comfortable around her and I feel like I could talk to her about everything…" Hideaki confessed shyly.

"Do you mean Ren?" Kouki smirked slightly and the brunette looked at him surprised. "Y-You know it?" "I saw you blushing when you were practising with her." Kouki chuckled and the other boy smiled sheepishly, "Oh I didn't know I'm so obvious."

"Are you going to tell her?" Kouki asked. "I-I really want to ask her out but I don't want to endanger our friendship if she rejects me." Hideaki answered worriedly. "Don't worry. I know Ren and she would never hurt you. I can assume you she would say yes." Kouki told his friend and he smiled in respond.

"Then I will ask her!" Hideaki said determined. "But you have to ask Mika too." Kouki's eyes widened again but before he could say something, the tall boy was interrupting him. "Let's make a deal, I'll ask Ren out and you Mika. Deal?" "I'm not so sure about that…" "C'mon! You have to take this opportunity before it's too late!"

Kouki thought about it for a while and then nodded. "Ok…I'll ask her…But give me some time! I've never really talked to her before so I can't ask her now." Hideaki nodded understandably. "But don't forget about it!" He chuckled and Kouki blushed lightly.

After a while they arrived at Kouki's house but Hideaki felt bad for letting his friend going home while he had these problems with his father. "Are you sure you'll be ok?" he asked Kouki and he gave him a nod. "Don't worry Hideaki. I'm now able to defend myself! I'll be fine!" Kouki smiled lightly and entered through the door after saying goodbye to his friend.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

 **A/N: Sorry for any grammar and language mistakes! And I'm really sorry for being so slow with updating! Hope you like it ^^**

Kouki stepped inside, his father was asleep on the couch which surprised Kouki because it wasn't that late. But after seeing the empty wine bottle on the floor he understood immediately. He stepped closer to him, making sure he was dead asleep and was about to head into his room, but stopped when he noticed the newspaper in his father's hand and the red circles which were drawn on it.

Kouki carefully bent down and realized, it was the employment ad and his orange eyes widened. When his father let out a snore, the boy jumped and ran into his room. Fortunately his father didn't notice him.

As Kouki shut the door behind him he sighed and stared at the wall opposite of him. Thinking that his father probably lost his job, he then opened the window a bit to aerate his room for a while. 'What will happen if he won't find another one?' he asked himself worriedly but then shook his head. 'That's his damn problem not mine!'

He changed his cloths and began to practise like Hideaki advised him to do. He began with sit-ups and press-ups which he repeated a few times. At first it was really hard for him but after a while he could do even more of them. He didn't become very muscular but he felt clearly stronger. After that he always practised the moves the tall boy had showed him so he won't forget them.

One day he came into conflict with his father again which ended with Kouki being thrown into the basement again, but this time the blonde boy didn't cry. He was just angry about himself for not being strong enough yet and was determined to practise even more and harder.

'I won't give up…He might win now but the next time I'll be the one.' He thought while gritting his teeth. It was still hard for him to confront his fear of the dark but he helped himself with closing his eyes and imagines how he would finally fight against every fear and oppression.

A month had passed by and it was almost the end of October. Kouki returned from school and suddenly his father grabbed him roughly by his arm. The boy was about to free himself from the grip but was immediately pushed into a seat before he could react.

"Sit down I need to tell you something." His father told him and the boy was glaring up at him. 'Not now.' He said himself suppressing the urge to jump up and charge at the tall man, so he took a deep breath to calm down.

"I lost my job about a month ago and now I finally got a post. It's in Yokohama, but just for two months. I need it because we are on the brink to go broke and I'll earn much more than I did before even in these two months. So after I'm back I'll search for a job here in Tokyo but for the time I'll go to Yokohama." Kouki's eyes widened, he never expected that. He suppressed a smile and simply nodded.

"You're old enough to take care of yourself. Besides you can use the money you have in your piggybank to buy something to eat." He explained flatly.

"What!? Are you serious?" Kouki responded quickly and angrily. "Do you want me to stay here and babysit you?" His father added annoyed and with a glare while the boy shook his head. "Good. I need to pack my things together, I have to leave tomorrow at 6 o'clock in the morning." The man continued and went to his bedroom but stopped in front of the door.

"If I ever find out you blunder here around or something like that, it'll be your shot." He said with a serious undertone and shut the door behind him. Kouki flinched slightly at the sound and ran back into his room.

He quickly changed, did his daily practices and went to bed with a relieving feeling. He thought about the last month he spent with his friends at the cinema, at the arcade or the meadow. It was a wonderful time and now it's going to be even better. Kouki has a smile on his lips; he had so much fun with his friends and couldn't wait to spend the Christmas holidays with them too.

Besides Kouki became more and more confident howsoever he was still too afraid to talk to Mika. Hideaki was still dragging him to finally ask her out and made clear he will only confess Ren his feelings, which became even stronger, when Kouki finally talked to Mika so he couldn't retract. But Kouki never knew how to start a conversation with the raven haired girl although Hideaki tried to encourage him.

Closing his eyes he was really looking forward the next two months. In this time he needn't to be afraid of consequences or punishments from his father. He sighed dreamily and fell asleep with a smile.

* * *

The next day Kouki woke up quite early and remembered that today his father is going to leave so he quickly stood up. When he opened his door his father was already standing there with a luggage and a ticket in his hands. The man looked at him with his cold grey eyes rather uninterested.

"Don't be late for school. I'll be back before Christmas." He said awkwardly but stern and Kouki just nodded. As the door closed the blonde boy waited a brief moment before jumping in joy. 'This isn't a dream!' he thought with a bright smile and ran back into his room. He got ready for today, ate some cornflakes and happily left for school.

When he arrived, Ren and Hideaki were already waiting for him and he immediately told them the news. They were very delighted for Kouki and happy to know that for this time nothing bad could happen to the blonde boy.

The lessons ended really quickly today and after school Kouki, Ren and Hideaki were walking down the hallway to place their books into the lockers, when they suddenly heard a voice, "Please…Stop! I already gave you my money!" They froze and stared at each other with wide eyes.

"Yeah, I know. But it's fun seeing you cry like a baby." A second voice responded with an evil laugh. Kouki quickly ran over to where the voices came from, he immediately recognized who the other voice belonged to, and his friends followed him.

They stopped and hid behind a wall, carefully peeking into another corridor and Kouki's orange eyes widened. Daiki was pressing another student, who was clearly younger and smaller then the bully, against the wall forcefully. "D-Daiki stop!" the younger boy cried and Kouki gritted his teeth. The other students were probably already at home because the lesson ended about 20 minutes ago.

"We need to help him!" Hideaki whispered and Kouki nodded. "I'll do that!" he said determined and Ren looked at him worriedly. "Are you sure?" she asked carefully and the blonde boy nodded again. She hesitated but then agreed, "Ok…Hideaki and I will help you if something will happen." She added biting her lip nervously.

Ren trusted him but she was still anxious about her friend and feared the bully might go tougher on Kouki this time. The blonde boy stepped forward firmly.

"Stop that Daiki!" Kouki's voice was stern and his gaze serious. Daiki, who pressed the younger boy with glasses and copper hair against the lockers now, like he always did with Kouki turned his head to the new voice. "Do you want to play the hero Wakahisa?"

He let go of the other boy who fell limp to the ground rubbing his head. The bully stepped towards Kouki with a smug grin on his lips. "You will never learn it, won't you?" he raised his fist and that was Kouki's moment. He leap aside and grabbed Daiki's fist, like he practised it with Hideaki, and used the shock effect to spin it slightly but quickly.

Daiki's eyes widened and pain rose up his arm. He fell to his knees and Kouki let go of him but Daiki quickly jumped back on his feet to attack the blonde boy agian. Ren gasped and was about to intervene but then she saw Kouki grabbing the bully's shirt, throwing him over his shoulder and doing an O Goshi.

She stopped in her tracks, her eyes widened and Hideaki smiled about Kouki's skills. Daiki was laying on the floor, frozen and too shocked to believe what was happening."That's impossible! You can't be that strong!"

"But I am." Kouki answered confidently and quickly glanced at his friends who were evidently proud of him. It made him really happy and he looked back at Daiki. "Don't mess with me again. Nor with any other students." Kouki added sternly and let Daiki on the floor while he walked towards the younger boy who was still sitting on the ground perplexed.

But suddenly the bully stood up again and ran towards the orange eyed boy angrily. "Just you wait, Wakahisa!" He raised his fist now more powerful and quickly Kouki turned around, striking up his palm under Daiki's nose and threw his whole weight into the move while avoiding the attack at the same time.

The black haired boy gasped and losing his balance. For the third time he was laying on the floor and quickly stepped back as he stood up, hiding his nose in his hands.

Kouki didn't mean to hit him that hard but Daiki was moving very fast towards him and this made the attack more critical. "Y-Y-You won!" Daiki yelled and Kouki noticed blood was rolling down his face, probably from his nose. "Just l-leave me alone!"

He ran away as fast as he could, looking once back to check if Kouki wasn't behind him and left the hallway. Kouki smirked triumphantly, 'He's the real coward now!'

Ren and Hideaki ran towards Kouki excited and happily. "Are you alright?" the girl asked and Kouki nodded with a content smile. "I did it!" he shouted cheerfully. "I'm not a coward anymore! Nor am I weak!" he raised his fist up happily.

The tall boy smiled, "You never were a coward." He looked into the direction where Daiki was gone, "He won't harm you anymore."

"I'm so proud of you Kouki-chan!" Ren giggled and hugged him tightly. "R-Ren I-I can't b-b-breath!" "Oh! Sorry!" the girl said sheepishly and let him go.

The copper haired boy managed to stand up and walked towards Kouki. He bowed to him gratefully, "Th-Thank you so much! That was very brave of you! I'm Itsuki Kato your name is Wakahisa, isn't it?" The blonde boy nodded with a smile. "But you call me Kouki."

"You are a real hero! Daiki had bullied me and some other students for a while and no one could stop him. But I'm sure he won't do it anymore! You are much braver and stronger than him, you could always fight Daiki!" The boy said excited and Kouki's orange eyes widened by the compliment.

"Y-You really think so?" he asked and the boy nodded. "Of course! I'll tell everyone about your heroics!" he walked away and Kouki watched him while being overwhelmed. He felt proud of himself and strong for the first time in his life. Although the attention made him feel slightly awkward, he was happy he could help the boy and that Daiki would never threaten him again.

"Let's celebrate this!" Ren said cheerfully, waking Kouki up from his daydream. He looked back at his friends and nodded with a smile. He still couldn't believe he was able to fight Daiki and he never felt so proud before. The friends walked to their lockers where they placed their books in and left the building while talking about Kouki's victory.

* * *

As they walked down the street they quickly agreed with each other that they should celebrate at the ice cream parlour, which was fortunately still open even if it was nearly November.

On their way an old lady with a tiny dachshund came across them and Hideaki eyed the dog carefully while changing sites with Ren so he was as far away from it as possible. His friends noticed his action and watched him confused and with a smirk. The dog suddenly stopped at looked up at the three students curiously.

"Don't say you're afraid of such a tiny dog?" Ren giggled and bend down to pet the dog, while the woman was smiling. Hideaki didn't trust the dog but he noticed it wasn't acting dangerously; to the contrary it gently rubbed his head against the girl's hand and sniffed it hesitantly.

Hideaki took a deep breath, extended his hand carefully to touch the dog's fur when it suddenly started barking. The tall boy flinched and jumped back, hiding behind Ren out of reflex while his friends and even the old woman were laughing at his reaction. Kouki had even tears in his eyes and needed a moment to calm down.

"I can't believe someone as tall as you would be afraid of such a tiny dog" the blonde boy said within his laughter and Hideaki scratched his head sheepishly, "Yeah…They are really scary sometimes."

"That's adorable!" Ren giggled and Hideaki blushed, joining their laughter. They said goodbye to the old woman and continued their walk.

* * *

"I just love ice cream! I could eat it even in winter." The girl said joyfully and the boys agreed. They were sitting inside, on a table for three, enjoying their sundae. There were some other customers too because the weather was quiet good for an autumn day. The sun was shining while the colourful leaves were blowing through the town by the gentle breeze.

"You know what?" Ren suddenly began while digging her spoon into the vanilla scoop of her sundae. The boys looked at her curiously. "I heard Riku asked Mika out on a date." Kouki chocked and his eyes were slightly widen, "Wh-What? D-Did she agree?"

Ren eyed him surprised. "I-I mean I can't believe she would dating such a loser like him." Kouki quickly shoved a great portion of ice cream into his month, avoiding Ren's gaze. Hideaki suddenly noticed that the girl was eyeing him with a grin and he quickly looked down, trying to be unobtrusive. But Ren understood immediately, "Oh, I understood! So you are jealous?"

"Wh-what? No! I just think that a girl like Mika deserves someone better than Riku." Kouki explained himself with a small blush on his cheeks.

"Someone like you?" Ren teased and Kouki immediately answered, "Ye-Wait, no!" Ren giggled and even Hideaki couldn't suppress his smirk. "Aw Kouki-chan has a crush on Mika~" The girl sang and Kouki's face became now fully red.

"That's not true!" Kouki crossed his arms and Ren giggled again. "You deny it, which means it is true." Ren sang again and Hideaki couldn't hold in a chuckle, seeing Kouki's red face was just too priceless for him.

"Hey stay out of this Hideaki! I'm not the only one with a crush here." Kouki added and the tall boy blushed immediately. Ren looked at him with a smile, "Aw that's cute! Who is the lucky one?" she asked curiously and Hideaki avoided her eyes again, shifting nervously.

'Shall I tell her now? But I wanted to wait so Kouki could do the first move and talk to Mika.' He looked at her for a brief moment and his blue eyes met her emerald ones. 'I need to tell her! It's the perfect moment! And what if someone else will ask her before I do? I would regret it till the end of my life! I can't wait!' Hideaki was determined and took a deep breath.

"R-Ren? I-" suddenly a melody interrupted him, it was his mobile phone. "Oh s-sorry…" he mumbled bashfully before taking it out of his bag. He received a text massage and he quickly read it.

"I'm sorry my mother just wrote that I have to go home because she invited some friends for dinner and I should help her in the kitchen, she claims she would burn everything." He chuckled sheepishly.

"But you have to tell us who your crush is." Ren added with a smirk while Hideaki was blushing furiously. He was about to say something but his mobile phone was ringing again. It was another text massage; his mother has indeed burned the fried chicken.

"I-I really should go!" The boy quickly placed some money on the table, stood up and clumsily stumbled over the leg of his chair but was able to keep his balance.

He cleaned his throat, "I see you tomorrow at school!" he waved and left the ice cream parlour. He was really sad and disappointed that he couldn't confess Ren his feelings, but he was even more determined to do it the next days. The boy was gone and Ren and Kouki decided to pay and leave too.

Kouki insisted to accompany Ren to her house. They walked through a small park and Ren sat down on a bench, "Let's enjoy the last hours of this wonderful day before it ends." She said, closing her eyes and sighed happily.

Kouki smiled and sat down next to her. "There is not much left of this year, we should appreciate every day…" The girl continued and opened her eyes to look at her friend who nodded with a small smile. 'She's really profound…' Kouki thought impressed and her words made him always thoughtful.

"Mika friendly refused to go on a date with Riku." She spoke softly and Kouki's eyes widened. "R-Really?"

Ren nodded, "Talk to her and ask her out. It was almost too late but you got a second chance! Not everyone is so lucky."

The boy thought about it for a moment and smiled with a nod. "I'll do it!" Ren gave him a bright smile. "Why haven't you told me about that earlier?" she asked curiously and Kouki scratched his neck. "This is kind of new for me too…" Ren chuckled and they remained silent for a moment, watching as some people passed by.

"Too bad Hideaki didn't tell us who his crush is." Ren pouted slightly. "Well I know who it is…" Kouki chuckled and suddenly noticed what he just said. His orange eyes widened, "I mean…um I would like to know too."

"What are you hiding from me, Kouki-chan? Do you know who the one is Hideaki have a crush on? Is it someone I know? Is it Koharu? Miyu? Wait! It's Setsuko isn't it? Every boy has a crush on her. Or maybe…Ai?" Kouki remained silent and she realized she was battering him with questions.

"Oh sorry…" she blushed embarrassed. "I should control my enthusiasm and curiosity. You know…I was just curious because…" she hesitated and it really surprised Kouki. She always was a direct and honest person who said what she had in mind and it was untypically for her to be shy and unsure.

The girl smiled lightly, "May I tell you a secret?" Kouki met her emerald green eyes. "Of course." Ren's cheeks turned red, "I…I may have a small crush on Hideaki." She said sheepishly and Kouki gave her a warm smile. He was about to tell her that the tall brown haired boy was feeling the same but stopped. He was sure that Hideaki would prefer to tell her personally.

"Why haven't you told him yet? Maybe he likes you in this way too." He said calmly and the girl blushed again. "Nah…You know, I'm sure I'm not the type of girl he likes…He probably likes the pretty ones like Setsuko…A more girlish one."

"I'm sure he prefers you than those other girls who are only focused on their looks. You are different than them and that in a positive way!" Kouki responded and the girl looked back at him with a sincere smile. "That's sweet of you…but I don't want to raise my hopes too high. Like I said, I'm not as pretty as the other girls at our school…Look at me, I'm almost a boy…" she sighed unfamiliar desperately.

"Don't say that. You are a pretty girl with a loveable character. You make people happy just with your presence. A lot of boys would be happy if they could call you their girlfriend." The girl blushed. "Aw thank you Kouki-chan!" she pulled him in a bone crushing hug. "Ren!" Kouki cried out.

"Hehe sorry!" she let go of him. "Thanks for being my friend Kouki…" she smiled warmly and he chuckled. "I have to be the one who thank you. If I haven't met you or Hideaki…I would be still a coward who lost every hope and joy in life. You really make my days worth living…"

Ren was touched and hugged him again but this time more gently and carefully. A tear rolled down her cheek silently which the boy didn't notice. They remained at the park for an hour and then Kouki accompanied Ren to her house.

"Do you want to stay for dinner?" she asked with a smile. When she opened the door Nori was suddenly running towards them. "Huh?" Kouki quickly and easily caught him and held him in his arms with a chuckle.

"Thanks, but I have tons of homework to do for tomorrow." He looked at the boy in his arms who eyed him curiously and handed him back to Ren. He hasn't really made experiences with children but he was sometimes playing with the twins when he was visiting Ren.

"He grew very fast." He commented and the girl smiled while holding her brother. He was rather tired so Nori didn't try to free himself this time.

"Yeah and he's very loud." She added and he yawed lightly. "He should go back to his bed." Kouki lightly ruffled through the boy's ruby hair. "Goodnight Nori. See you tomorrow Ren." He waved with a smile and the girl tilted her head slightly since her hand wasn't free at the moment. "See you Kouki-chan!"

Kouki left and Ren walked inside, carrying her brother to his room. On her way she greeted her father who was watching a TV show with Kenta and Aina who discussed which character is more loveable. It made her smile when she heard Aina and Kenta shouting at each other and her father trying to keep them calm. "Every character is loveable in their own way." That was what he always said with a sheepish smile but it didn't work, like always.

Her mother was visiting an old friend from school. They often talked about their husbands and children, besides they gave each other some cooking advises and great book tips. Keiko was probably in her room and already asleep. Ren brought Nori in his bed and closed the door behind her silently. She entered her room and sat down on her desk.

Actually she should do her homework too but soon she found herself making some sketches and doodling on some papers. She was lost in thought and thought about the Christmas holidays and that Taichi promised he will visit them. Everyone was really looking forward that. 'We could invite Kouki again like last year, and Hideaki!' She sighed happily and looked out of her window.

She twisted one of her ruby strand in her finger while thinking about Kouki's words. It made her smile and she was thinking about how to thank him. Suddenly an idea crossed her mind and her emerald eyes widened in glee. 'I know what kind of Christmas gift I could do for Kouki!' she eagerly took out a new sketch book and grabbed a pencil.

Her eyes were fixed on the white sheet which she filled with sketches of Kouki, Hideaki and herself. After finishing and adjusting some strokes she happily inspected her work. 'I'll draw a manga of us, which will show how we became friends and what we experience together!' she made a brief pause, thinking.

'Besides I need to draw the fight scene between Kouki and Daiki! It will show how Kouki became strong!' she happily continued and wrote on another paper which scenes she will add in this manga. 'I try to fill it till Christmas so it will be full of the moments we have spent together and our normal school day.' She wrote some more things down. 'I could also do an exemplar for Hideaki!' She thought excited and was still writing eagerly. There was still so much to do.

It took her the whole night to make some more planning and sketches but she enjoyed every second. She really couldn't wait to finish it and see Kouki's and Hideaki's reaction. "I hope they will like it!" she said with a smile while she finished another sketch.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

 **A/N: I'm really sorry for not updating for so long! I had a huge writer's block but now I'm back! Besides thank you so much for every favourite and follow :3 Sorry for any language and grammar mistakes! Hope you like it ^^**

Hideaki was in the kitchen and made a cake for his mother's birthday. He thought about his father and sister and what they might be doing right sighed and stopped to stir the dough for a moment, being lost in a daydream. Hideaki thought about the time when his parents still liked each other and lived together, when his sister was getting along with her mother and they were living in their house in Kyoto. It was a happy time.

But he shook his head, 'It was no coincident we came here…If we haven't, I would have never met Kouki nor Ren.' He smiled as he thought about the ruby-haired girl. The boy continued to make the cake and shoved it into the oven. He cleaned everything while the cake was baking and stretched his arms after he finished.

Ren crossed his mind again and he sighed sadly. He tried to finally tell her how he feels but there was always someone or something interrupting him. One day his mother was calling him again to buy some milk and tomatoes on his way home, interrupting him again before he could speak and another day it was a high wind, blowing Ren's art project away. Fortunately they could catch the paper before it got dirtied.

'I can't escape the feeling that it's better that way…It's like fate doesn't willed to let it happen. Maybe we should just stay friends…' he sighed sadly again and his blue eyes suddenly stopped at the calendar which hung at the kitchen wall. It was now the 8th of November and exams period was approximating quickly. 'There will be so much to study…and we won't be able to meet as often as before.'

His alarm clock, which he set after he shoved the cake into the oven, woke him up from his thoughts. He checked the cake and took it out carefully then placing it on a table. He smiled in content and prepared a bowl for the cream. While he was mixing the ingredients together he also thought about Kouki.

He was very proud of his friend when he defended himself against the bully without passing the limit. Hideaki had to admit that he was slightly afraid Kouki might retaliate for being bullied and exaggerating in doing so. But the tall boy was glad his friend was way better than this bully.

'I wonder if he finally learned his lesson.' He asked himself but abandoned this thought and continued to make the cake.

* * *

Meanwhile Ren was eagerly working on her manga and even finished a stack of pages in a few days. 'It's going to be more than I expected!' she thought happily. 'The more, the merrier!' She finished another page which showed the moment when Hideaki showed Kouki some tricks in hand-to-hand combat.

She smiled at the memory and adjusted some strokes again. Ren was working everyday on her manga without forgetting about her homework and even stayed late at night to finish more scenes. Although it was a bit stressful and exhausting it made her happy and determined to finish it as quickly as possible. Drawing was her life anyway.

She ticked another article of her to-do list and took another piece of paper to draw a sketch of Kouki, but somehow her hand didn't move. Her propelling pencil remained on the same spot and she just stared at the white paper. The girl felt somehow sad and worried all of a sudden while her hand still wasn't moving. Ren didn't know why but suddenly she had to think about Kouki and if he will ever get along with his father one day, but she doubted that.

On the other hand she was glad that the blonde boy was now finally able to defend himself and she immediately thought about Hideaki and how he helped Kouki to become more confident. Her heart fluttered lightly at the thought of the tall boy, but she just shook her head.

'Now it's not the time for that…Besides Hideaki wouldn't be interested in me anyway and I don't want to ruin our great friendship.' She thought with a sad smile and she glance out of her window looking at the clouds. 'I'm more worried about Kouki now…I hope he will be fine even when his father will be back in Tokyo…' she sighed sadly and remained like this for a moment. In general she was a very happy and cheerful person but sometimes she could be very thoughtful and worrying, just like now. She looked back at the paper, her emerald eyes were fixing on it.

'I don't know why, but I have the feeling, that something really bad will happen when his father comes back…'

* * *

The next day Kouki was sitting in his History class without listening to his teacher. Exam period was going to start in a few days and he hasn't started to study yet. He was bored and just waited for the holidays, but then he remembered that his father will be back until then. The blonde boy sighed annoyed at the thought of this man. 'He can stay where he is now…I don't need him.' he gritted his teeth.

After the teacher dismissed the class, Kouki left the classroom to meet his friends outside for the break, but as he turned the corner he suddenly bumped into someone. "Huh?" he heard a timid voice and he quickly apologized. As he looked up to meet the person's eyes he slightly gasped. His orange eyes widened as he recognize the girl, it was Mika Hamasaki. She had a friendly smile on her lips and titled her head.

"I'm sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going." She said sheepishly and Kouki blushed slightly without saying a word. "Um…You're Kouki, Kouki Wakahisa, aren't you?" Mika asked shyly and the boy nodded feeling his heart beating faster. 'Is this really happening?' he thought to himself and his eyes locked with the turquoise ones in front of him again.

"I heard you were the one who beat Daiki! That was really brave of you!" Kouki looked down hesitantly, searching for the right words to say and trying not to panic. Even though he became more confident he was feeling still shy around the raven haired girl. "I-It's nothing…really." She gave him an eye-closed smile. "You have a good heart. I like you."

Kouki looked back at her in slight shock. "Y-You like me?" she nodded and her cheeks turned a light shade of red. "Daiki stopped messing with other students now, thanks to you! Everyone is now looking up to you." She added cheerfully and Kouki was overjoyed and immediately smiled. It made him really happy to know that the other students were thinking of him like that and that he needn't to feel like coward anymore.

He was about to say something but was interrupted by another girl, "Hey Mika let's go! The library is closing early today!" The raven-haired girl looked slightly disappointed and glanced at the girl who was one of her friends. "I'm coming!" As she turned back to Kouki she gave him a warm smile. "Sorry I have to go now." She bowed lightly. "Maybe we could talk sometimes in our next classes?" she waved and followed her friends while Kouki watched her, still overwhelmed what just happened.

"There you are Kouki!" a cheerful voice chirped behind him and he saw Ren running towards him, Hideaki following. "We haven't seen you outside so we thought you were still in your classroom." "Sorry my teacher exceeded the lesson again." Kouki apologized sheepishly, "Besides Mika was talking to me!" "Really? What did she say?" Ren asked curiously. Although she was still having this strange feeling she tried to hide it.

Kouki blushed slightly, "She told me that Daiki is now leaving the other students alone and doesn't mess up with them anymore." he added with a small smile and his friend's eyes widened. "Daiki got what he deserved and now he knows how to treat other people correctly." Hideaki said and his friends agreed before they decided to get something to eat before the next lesson started. On their way Ren was bombing Kouki with questions about his talk with Mika.

During the last break they were sitting outside on a bench, even if it was slightly chilly outside they needed some fresh air to get their mind free, it was a long day. "We're going to do the first test quiet soon…" Ren sighed, "I've got to learn so much for this one." "Me too." The tall boy added and Kouki just shrugged, "It won't be that bad. Besides I don't really feel like studying right now. I want to enjoy my free time before my father comes back."

Ren suppressed the strange feeling again as Kouki mentioned his father but she couldn't bare it anymore. She wasn't sure what it could be that might happen to him but she desperately wanted to avoid it; whatever it is.

Ren looked at him worriedly, "But these exams will be very important. We could also study together if you want." She suggested but the blonde boy just shook his head. "I'll be fine. I'm going to repeat the stuff we did in class that should be enough." 'His father could get very angry if Kouki didn't pass the exams…and I don't want to imagine what will happen to him.' she thought in fear.

Ren eyed her friend with concern, "I can give you my notes if you want." Kouki glanced briefly at the girl seeing her worried face and then nodded. He understood that she wanted to help him and accepted her offer so she needn't worrying about him. The blonde boy didn't want to be rude or mean he just didn't want to waste his free time without his father being at home with studying. He was sure that it won't be that hard and that he'll pass them somehow.

The bell rang and they headed back inside. They arrange to wait at the lockers after class so they could walk home together. Times flies and as their classes ended, they meet at the lockers like always. There Ren and Hideaki took their books out of it to study with them at home while Kouki took his Math book and Ren's notes so the girl won't worry about him again.

They left the building and were greeted by the cold wind. Besides the sun was now going to set and dark clouds were hover above them. On their half way Kouki suddenly interrupted their conversation because he remembered that he need to go to the market to buy something to eat. He ate the last things which once remained in the fringe this morning and totally forgot about it.

"I need to hurry it's going to be dark!" he quickly said looking up at the sky concerned. "We could accompany you." Hideaki suggested but Kouki quickly shook his head. Now that everyone was looking up at him he didn't want to be branded as a coward again who was afraid of the dark and who needed his friends to go with him.

"It's alright. It would be just inconvenient for you." He gave his friends a reassure smile. "But please text me when you arrive at home." Ren added and Kouki nodded calmly. Since Ren had this strange feeling she was really worrying about her friend.

They said goodbye to each other and the blonde boy run the other way. Hideaki and Ren looked after him for a brief moment. "I hope he'll be ok…" Ren whispered and the tall boy commiserated with her. "Y-You are really worried about him, did something happen?" he asked cautiously and the girl nodded weakly. "It's complicated…" they started to continue their way home and Ren told him about her frightened premonition. Hideaki calmed her down, saying that everything is going to be fine and that they will care for Kouki so that nothing bad will happen to him.

As they arrived at Ren's house Hideaki accompanied her to her door and she gave him a warm smile. "Thanks for listening Hideaki. I'm feeling way better now." She said honestly and with a sigh of relief.

Hideaki was about to answer but was interrupted as the door flew open. Their heads shot up into the direction to see Ren's mother with Kenta following behind her. The woman had ruby hair and emerald eyes just like Ren and she was as cheerful as her daughter.

"Oh! Hello Ren, there you are!" she said happily surprised. "Who's that?" Kenta asked flatly and pointed at Hideaki who shifted nervously. Ren's mother eyed the tall boy curiously, "Oh and who is that nice companion of you?" Ren blushed slightly, remembering that her mother has never met the tall boy before, "T-That's Hideaki. He's one of my friends." Kenta eyed him curiously and her mother seems delighted.

"Ah! That's the boy you were telling me so much about! He's really a handsome young man." "Mom, please you embarrass him." Ren said feeling the heat in her cheeks as Kenta chuckled silently. "G-Good evening Mrs Akiyama. I-I hope I didn't c-cause you any trouble." Hideaki bowed with a sheepish and nervous smile.

"My, what a real gentleman! And those dimples are adorable." she winked at Ren who searched for help from her brother but he just smiled amused and watched the scene happily. The girl glared at him but his smirk just grew wider. "You should take him home more often! He could stay for dinner if he wants." The woman suggested and Hideaki bowed again, "T-Thank you for your kind offer b-but I need to go now because my mother wanted me to make the dinner for today."

Ren's mother smiled in glee, "You are a really nice boy. Ren, why were you hiding him from me?" the girl felt slightly uncomfortable and Aina rescued her from their mother as she appeared at the door. "Mom I think Ren wanted to be alone with her boyfriend." The girl smirked and the woman looked at her watch in surprise, "Oh! I need to go too! It was nice to meet you Hideaki you can come and visit us whenever you want." She winked at him and walked past him and the daughter. Kenta followed her with a baking sheet in his hands and Ren gave him a questioned glance.

"Mom promised to bring her famous casserole over to the neighbours." The boy, who actually just wanted to continue his video game, explained bored and followed his mother. The woman insisted that he shall accompany her because he was sitting all day long in his room. Aina went back inside after giving Ren a smirk, leaving the two blushing messes alone.

"So…that was my mother…" Ren said still perplexed and Hideaki scratched his neck sheepishly. "She seems very kind." The girl chuckled, "I'm sorry if she abashed you. She usually says what's in her mind." Hideaki smiled warmly, "Don't worry you haven't met my mother yet."

They chuckled and remained silent, some leaves rustled in the wind and laugher was heard from afar. "I should go now; I don't want to see my mother when she's hungry." Hideaki said while waving farewell and turned, when he suddenly felt two arms wrapping around his torso from behind. He stopped moving and looked down and turned his head lightly to the ruby haired girl.

"Good night, take care of you." Ren said blushing, breaking the embrace and Hideaki's blue eyes softened. It was a brief but warm and amicable hug. "Goodnight…" he said with a smile as Ren left through the door.

Hideaki smiled as he walked home thinking about the emerald eyed girl. He enjoyed the time with her and that was everything he wanted. He would just ruin their friendship if he would tell her about his feelings she probably didn't reciprocate anyway. Besides it would be just awkward between them, so he decided to enjoy every second with the lively ruby haired girl even if that means that they would just stay friends.

* * *

Kouki ran as fast as he could. It took him longer than he thought and it was getting darker outside. He was panting heavily and held the bag with the food he bought against his chest as firmly as possible while running down the streets. He avoided dark alleyways and followed the light of the lamps which illuminated his way. But as he turned left, he noticed that there were two lamps which were broken and that the next working one was some feet away.

His eyes widened in shock. He gulped; it was the only way to get home. So he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Kouki ran even faster than before and as he opened one of his orange eyes slightly, he felt a tear rolling down his face. It embarrassed him but he couldn't suppress his urge to cry. The dark was still too scary for him.

He finally reached the lamp which wasn't broken and sighed in relief. He made a brief pause because he was out of breath while quickly wiping the tear away, ashamed of himself. Kouki took a last deep breath and continued running home. When he finally reached his door he quickly unlocked it and stepped inside, switching the lights on in every room and sighing in relief. 'Finally…' he thought. Then he took out his mobile phone and texted Ren that he's back home. After that he went to the kitchen to put the food into the fringe.

As he finished, he was about to walk into his room but suddenly noticed that the telephone was blinking which means that there was a missing call. He took a closer look and saw that a strange number called three times, but no one was home to answer it. "Strange…" he mumbled and turned away but stopped.

'Shall I call back?' he asked himself, 'But what if it's just a prank, or even worse what if my father was trying to call me because he thinks I'm not able to stay alone at home.' He thought angrily and stared at the telephone again. He was curious and wanted to know who it was but at the end he decided to ignore it. He was too tired and just wanted to eat something before going to bed.

But still the strange number never left his mind.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

 **A/N: Sorry for any language and grammar mistakes! Hope you like it ^^**

Kouki woke up by his alarm clock and lazily sat up to turn it off. He stretched his arms and looked around his room. It was a mess, his cloths were lying on the floor, his papers were spread all around his desk and some dishes remained on his nightstand. He scratched the back of his head and decided to clean it a bit before preparing for school. So he collected his papers and shoved them into a drawer while folding his shirts and trousers quickly and placing them on his chair. The boy took the dishes and went to the kitchen when suddenly the number, which called him a while ago, crossed his mind again.

Kouki stopped in his tracks briefly but then continued to place the dishes into the sink, 'I'll clean that after school…' he thought and went back to his room, changing his cloths. He looked out of the window. Thick snowflakes were falling down the sky and covered the streets and trees. It was December and the holidays are going to start soon.

'I can't believe it's almost the end of the year.' Kouki sighed and buttoned his uniform. The exams period was over now and Kouki didn't do really well. His teachers were disappointed of him and he was it too. Although Ren gave him her notes he was still too lazy to read them. He would never admit that to her and just told her he had a blackout which made him forget everything he had learned before. Fortunately his teacher gave him enough points so he needn't to repeat a form.

But still, his report won't be really fine this time and he decided to hide it from his father. A shiver ran down his spine as he thought about that man. 'Why does he have to come back?' the blonde boy thought annoyed and angrily, not wanting to see him ever again. He quickly suppressed this thought; he didn't want to think about this right now.

He sat down on the table and just ate a piece of bread because he wasn't really hungry this day. The blonde boy placed his head in his hand and looked up at the ceiling. He thought about the past weeks where he talked to Mika a few times. She was a rather shy girl, so they were too hesitantly to have a long conversation with each other, but they get along really well and even once did the homework together in the library.

Kouki had a smile on his lips and sighed. Suddenly his orange spotted the clock on the wall and he quickly stood up. 'I have to go!' he grabbed his coat and bag while slamming the door behind him. He ran through the snow, cheeks red from the cold and fortunately he was punctual for the first lesson. The boy took a deep breath and sat down on his seat.

* * *

Kouki came back from school around 5 pm and tossed his bag into his room. He was about to go to the kitchen and make something to eat as the telephone was suddenly ringing. Kouki jumped slightly and carefully stepped closer to it, taking a look at the number which was calling. He gasped lightly as he noticed it was this strange number again. "S-Shall I answer it?" he spoke hesitantly to himself but then grabbed the phone spontaneously and pressed the button to answer it. He was still too curious.

"H-Hello?" he began and heard a loud breathing on the other end. "K-Kouki? Is that you? A-Are you Kouki Wakahisa?" a woman's voice said and the boy's orange eyes widened.

"Yeah that's me…Whom am I talking to?" he answered and wasn't sure of this situation right now. "Kouki it's you! Th-Thank god I found you! I-I'm Ami Wakahisa…I'm your mother…" Kouki froze and he was speechless. The only thing he knew about his mother was her name, it was Ami.

'Is she…truly my mother? Is that a dream?' he thought and suddenly felt something wet on his cheeks. He was crying without really noticing it but quickly wiped them away ashamed. "K-Kouki? Are you still there?"

"Y-Yes." His voice cracked and he cleaned his throat. "Is that…really you?" He could hear the woman sniffing and he assumed she was crying too. "Yes, it's really me…But before I can carry on…is your father at home right now?" she asked and Kouki heard the fear in her voice. "No he is gone till Christmas…" he answered automatically. It still felt like a dream to him, so unrealistic but wonderful.

The woman sighed in relief, "Thank god…" she made a brief pause. "I was searching for you and called a few weeks ago but no one answered the phone…at first I thought it was the wrong number but I doubt that and couldn't give up, so I called you again. I'm so glad I am finally able to talk to you!" "I-I can't believe that this is happening…" he answered and quickly added, "W-Where do you got the phone number from?"

"I know it's very confusing right now…" she said in a calm voice and made a brief pause, "I was searching for your surname in the phone book of Tokyo and the other ones told me they didn't know someone called Kouki and no one answered this number before so it had to be you!"

"Where are you? Why am I hearing from you only now? Why did you leave me with him?" Kouki suddenly started and more tears were running down his face. "Is my sister there? Will you come back and take me with you? I don't want to stay with this man for the rest of my life!" his voice cracked again and now he was crying heavily.

"Kouki…please don't cry!" his mother said softly and was sniffing even more. "Y-Your sister Chouko is here with me…And she wants to meet you too, but I'm not in Tokyo right now...I'm still in Sendai. It's a long story and I need to tell you everything in private. I want to take the train tomorrow evening, so I'll be in Tokyo on Saturday. Besides Chouko will come with me and we'll rent a room in the hotel called Hoteru, please meet me there."

She suddenly sounded panicked as she added, "I have to hang up. I love you Kouki, please stay strong!" Kouki was about to answer her but the conversation ended quickly. He was frozen and held the phone still against his ear, waiting for his mother to tell him more but a long beep signal was the only sound that came out of the phone. After a moment he woke up from his rigidity and took a deep breath to calm down. He placed the phone back and sat down on the table, thinking about his mother's words.

'Is that really happening? Am I really able to her soon? Will she take me with him? Far away from my father…' He stared at the desk in front of him and a lot of questions were up in his mind. But soon he had a smile on his face and his eyes stopped staring but became soft as he thought about seeing his mother and sister. Kouki was really excited and couldn't express the wonderful feeling that was emerged in his heart right now…

* * *

The next day, it was Friday afternoon and Ren invited her friends to her home to celebrate the end of the exams period. They were sitting on a table where Ren and her family used to eat their dinner and the girl placed a cup of hot chocolate in front of Kouki, Hideaki and herself. "Thanks Ren!" they said in unison and she gave them a smile. "No problem at all!"

Ren's parents went to the park with the twins, playing in the snow while Aina was staying in her friend's house and Kenta was sitting in front of his computer or console, like usually. "Isn't it great, that we needn't to go to school because of the snow today?" Hideaki began happily and Ren agreed. "Yeah, the weekend is even longer now! And I can't wait for the holidays to see Taichi again!" she said excited.

"How are you going to spend you holidays?" Kouki asked Hideaki and he turned to look at his friend. "I'm going to visit my father in Kyoto." The tall boy responded, "My mother won't come with me but she said it's ok because she wanted me to spent some time with him and my sister." "That sounds great! I'll probably have to tame my siblings the whole time." Ren added sheepishly and they were laughing and talking about random things together.

Kouki could truly say that he was the happiest person on earth right now. Not only will he soon meet his mother and sister but he also became more confident and could finally beat his bully. Everyone was looking up at him, even the girl he liked. But the best thing that could happen to him, were his friends. They were always there for him; he couldn't say how happy he was to know them and how worth living his life became just because of them.

He smiled as he watched Ren telling a funny story of her siblings and Hideaki listening while chuckling. Although Kouki wasn't sure if Hideaki finally told Ren about his feeling he was sure he will do it and he didn't want to force it. Something like that needed time.

Kouki waited for his chance and then began to tell his friends what just happened a day ago, "My I have your attention please?" Kouki said playfully and his friends looked back at him curiously. "Yes sir what is it?" Ren joked and saluted while Hideaki smirked.

"I waited for the perfect moment to tell you this…" he made a brief pause a small smile was still on his face.

"Yesterday, I received a phone call from my mother!" he then continued excited and his friend's eyes widened. "Really?" they were surprised in a positive way and Kouki nodded while Ren ran over to the blonde boy, pulling him into a hug. "This is the best thing that could happen! I'm so happy for you!"

"That is good news!" the brunette added with an eye closed smile. "Everything is finally turning well for you!"

The girl sat back down on her seat and took a sip of her hot chocolate. "Are you going to meet her soon? And what's about your sister? Where is she now? Did she-" Ren stopped and smiled sheepishly as she noticed the boys looking at her wide-eyed. "Ops sorry." She scratched the back of her neck and soon they were snickering together.

"She told me that I shall meet her tomorrow at the Hoteru hotel and there she will explain everything to me. I'm really curious!" His friends nodded and Ren sighed happily, "Wow that's incredible! You know what?" she tilted her head and continued, "Why don't you come over the next week to introduce your mother and sister? You're invited too Hideaki!" she said as she turned to the tall boy. "And you can bring your mother too." She giggled and the boy blushed slightly.

"Besides you need to text me immediately after you met her! I won't be at home the whole weekend, because I'm going to visit my grandparents, but you need to tell me everything!" The girl got over-excited and calmed down as she noticed it herself, "Sorry, I'm still not that good at controlling my excitement." She chuckled and the friends were then talking about future plans like going to the beach, seeing the cheery blossoms during spring, visiting each other houses and playing video games or just watching films and so on.

Ren stood up and took her almost empty cup in her right and a spoon in her left hand, beating lightly on the porcelain. "I want to bring out a toast!" she grinned and the boys soon imitated her action and raised their cups with a smirk. "To us and the wonderful time we already spent together and the moments which will follow! And that we'll neither forget us nor the time we pass together!"

"I will never forget you!" Kouki added with a smile. "How could we ever forget the great time we spent together?" Hideaki responded happily and Ren said the last words, "To us!" they were laughing, joking and talking till the end of the day and left when the sun was already gone.

* * *

Ren was sitting on her desk while drawing her manga. She was already done and just corrected and adjusted some strokes. The girl sighed happily as she thought about the day and the good time she spent with her friends. Actually she had to go to bed now because she has to leave early in the morning but she didn't want to sleep already. She looked out at the window at the starry sky. She was happy to see her grandparents again and it was always funny with her siblings and parents but somehow she wanted to stay with Kouki. The strange feeling she had once was still there and she couldn't help but still being worried.

The girl was really delighted to hear that Kouki was going to meet his mother and that he's happy again after all this time. But she was afraid to, 'Everything is going so fast…I hope that this woman is really his mother.' She thought but shook her head, 'What are you thinking of Ren? Stop being paranoid.' She scolded herself and her emerald eyes looked back at the paper in front of her.

Ren sighed as she skimmed through her work and began to bind them together. It took her a while but when she finished, she had a huge smile on her face. 'I hope he'll like it!' she packed it into neatly fancy paper and placed it into her wardrobe. There was already another package in there. This was Hideaki's version and she was very impatient to give it to them. Her thoughts went back to the tall boy and she remembered that he said he's going on a cooking class and won't be here for the whole weekend too. This frightened the girl again.

'I just hope Kouki will be alright…' she thought and sat down on her bed, combing her ruby hair which was almost reaching her shoulders now. She smiled as she thought about the day her siblings were sticking sweets into it. 'I can't believe it's been so long …' she lay down with a pout. 'It's like yesterday Kouki and I were at the meadow and I placed this orange flower behind his ear.' She chuckled silently by the memory.

Although she was feeling kind of melancholy she stayed optimistic, 'Everything is going to be fine. Just don't panic so much...There's still so much time left and so many things to do! We already made a lot of plans and I'm really looking forward the next year! It will be great fun with Kouki and Hideaki!' The girl closed her eyes and was immediately asleep.

The friends had a great time together and not only didn't they know that this happy time was over soon but also that Kouki won't be able to see his friends ever again…

* * *

It was Saturday morning and Ren got up quickly to prepare herself for the trip. Her siblings were already waiting for her, telling her to hurry up and after 10 minutes she was ready. They sat down into the car and drove off while Ren was looking out of the window sadly thinking of Kouki. But she told herself again that everything is going to be alright and tried to stay optimistic. She looked at her mobile phone and couldn't wait to receive a message from Kouki.

Meanwhile Hideaki waited for his bus to Adachi were his cooking lesson will take place. It was a thank-you gift from his mother for preparing the last dinner for her and her co-workers. Hideaki was glad he could improved his skills a bit and being able to learn more from a five-star chef. He looked at his watch and sighed impatiently, but after a few minutes the bus finally arrived and he sat down next to the window.

Kouki woke up excited and quickly ran to the bathroom to take a shower. When he finished he searched for neat clothes and even combed his blonde messy hair. He was smiling the whole time out of excitement and happiness. The boy walked up and down through the flat and as he washed the dishes, he suddenly had an idea. It was a spontaneous, rashly idea but in his opinion the best one he could have.

'Why shall I stay here?' he asked while stopping in his tracks. 'I could pack my things and live together with my mother! Even if it's just in a hotel but I won't see this man ever again! I would be safe and sound!' He ran into his room and took some cloths out of his wardrobe and packed them into his backpack. 'I-I just need to convince her to stay in Tokyo! So I needn't to move in another town.' He shoved another pair of trousers into the bag and searched for his flashlight.

'And if she says no it's alright too, because I could also stay at Ren's house and will wait for her to come to Tokyo again. Maybe she'll move here one day.' He zipped up the backpack and remained on his spot for a moment thoughtfully.

'I just need to be far away from this man. It was so much better without him! And he won't treat me like he did ever again! Why am I realizing this only now?' He thought and checked if he needs something else before he left forever.

'This is my chance to leave this place!' Kouki was determined and had a triumphal smile on his face. A thought of his father crossed his mind and a shiver of disgust arose inside of him. "He won't neither care about me nor start searching for me anyway." He spoke quietly to himself and shook his head. 'I'm sure my mother will let me stay with her!' he repeated and looked back at his room for the last time, taking a deep breath. 'I can't wait to finally see my mother…' he thought and headed to the front door, but suddenly somebody unlocked it and the door handle moved down...


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

 **A/N: Sorry for any language and grammar mistakes! Thank you so much for your lovely reviews and for reading, faving and following this story! You really motivate me and it always make me really happy! You are awesome! :3 Hope you like the last chapter ^^**

Kouki's orange eyes widened in shock as the door opened, revealing a tall man with short blonde hair and piercing grey eyes. The boy backed off and he started to shake. "N-N-No!" he stuttered and his bag fell on the floor.

"That can't be…" terror was shown in his eyes as the man entered with a grumpy face. "Why are you back?" Kouki took another step back but suddenly his back met with the wall and he froze. The man in front of him eyed him angrily, "Is that how you welcome your father?" he growled and suddenly stepped over the bag and he looked down confused, "What are you doing with this?" he started and made a brief pause grabbing the bag to open it.

When he saw what was in there, a vein appeared on his forehead and his face became red from anger. "Where the hell did you think you're going?" he continued sternly and the boy tried to regain his composure. "Answer me, idiot!" his father slammed the door shut and stepped closer to the boy.

The boy gulped but immediately scolded himself for being afraid of this man. 'I'm not like that anymore! I'm not a coward!' determination grew inside of him and he felt more confident now. Although he couldn't believe that his father was already back he wouldn't allow the man to abuse him any longer.

"I'm going to stay with my mother! I won't live with you under the same roof anymore!" His father grabbed him by the collar but the blonde boy just glared at him, showing no fear in front of this man. "What are you talking about? Your mother is dead!" he shouted and Kouki suppressed a tear. "No, she isn't! She called me and said I could stay with her!" he lied about the last part, "She is-"

"You're such a stupid boy! How can you trust someone you have never met? You fool!" his father scolded and as he spoke Kouki smelled the alcohol coming out from his breath. 'He's drunk again? Maybe he got fired because of that and that's why he's already back. I need to get out of here.' Kouki thought determined and took a deep breath. 'I won't lose against him! Not this time!'

The blonde boy quickly pulled his father closer to him and knocked his head on the man's head which made him cry in pain. Besides he let go of Kouki, so he could prepare for the next attack. He obviously caught his father off guard who held his head in pain while cursing under his breath. Kouki's head hurt too but he suppressed the pain and through the adrenaline he wasn't really aware of it.

The man stood straight again and lifted his fist, "You little piece of-" he tried to hit Kouki but the boy grabbed the man's fist and twisted it, like he did with Daiki. His father wasn't even able to end his sentence, but cried in pain again. "You won't beat me this time." The boy said coldly and determined.

But suddenly, his father jumped at him and grabbed him by the throat, choking the boy, "What were you thinking, idiot?" his grip was strong and Kouki tried to free himself. He then stepped on his father's foot with all his strength what effected that the grip around the boy's neck loosed. Kouki eventually kneed his father in the groin hardly and the man fell down on the floor.

That was Kouki's chance. He ran to the door and was about to catch the door handle, but suddenly he stumbled over his own bag and fell face first on the floor. He growled in pain, trying to stand up quickly. But before he was able to stand on his feet, his father caught him by the leg and dragged him away from the door. "N-No!" Kouki cried, struggling in the man's grasp but with no success. "I have enough of you idiot!" The man yelled while the blonde boy tried to grab something to hold on, but his father was still too strong.

"You can rot in there! I don't need you anyway!" Kouki heard that another door was opened and he immediately knew in which room it leads. With his last strength he tried to free himself but suddenly his head thrust on the doorframe. Everything became black and he just heard his father's word in a blur, "And you really thought your dear mother would want to live together with something like you?"

* * *

After a few hours Kouki woke up. He lay on the floor exhausted and surrounded by the darkness. 'Is this the end?' he asked himself, eyes still shut so he needed to face the dark basement. He had slammed against the wooden door desperately but with no result. It was locked and after a while he gave up. He let himself fell limp on the floor. Kouki felt blood running down his head and he was too weak to stand up now. The boy heard how his father walking past the door, probably to go to the kitchen, but he didn't move. It was senseless anyway. He let out a long sigh and his tears fell down on the cold ground. He was shivering and still he could find a few hours of sleep…

* * *

Meanwhile Ren was waiting impatiently for Kouki's message. It was now Saturday night and still she got no respond of him. She sat on a bed while her siblings were playing a board game but she refused to play with them because she was too thoughtful right now. 'I tried to call him about four times but he didn't answer it…' she sighed and looked back at the display. 'Maybe he's just too busy talking with his mother and sister; they haven't seen each other for a while anyway...'

She tried to calm down and decided to call Hideaki and ask him how his cooking class proceed. He immediately answered the phone and they talked with each other for half an hour. He told her that their friend hadn't answered him too but soothed her, saying Kouki is talking with his mother and not hearing the phone right now. It helped the girl to not worry too much and soon she was feeling more relieved. She hung up after saying goodbye to the tall boy and stared up at the ceiling, taking long deep breaths. 'Everything will be alright…'

* * *

As Kouki woke up again he carefully opened his eyes. It was still dark and it was hard for him to suppress his fear. He whined lightly but was immediately disgust of himself. Besides he can't remember how long he has been locked here, but it's been a while now. He didn't know that it was already Sunday evening and the sun was going to set now. His stomach was grumbling louder and he was very thirsty. 'I won't die…in here!' He thought and even tried to stand up but fell a few times before he could keep his balance.

Every step hurt and he bit his lip to forget the pain. He needed to get out of here, 'I-I won't give up so easily! I'm strong now! I can…do it!' New power flowed through his body and he stepped closer to the door which was still locked. He pressed his ear against the wood when he suddenly heard that his father left the flat. 'That's my chance! I'll get out of here and be forever free from this man!' He slammed his whole body against the door and repeated that a few times. He beat against it, kicked it and as he was about to give up because of the pain he heard a cracking sound. The boy managed to break the quiet old and rusty lock and the door opened immediately.

Kouki gasped and had to close his eyes because of the sudden brightness. He looked around for a moment. It was already dark outside but the lamps were illuminating the room intensely. He was free! "I did it!" he shouted happily but his throat was too dry to say a clear word. So he quickly ran over to the sink and opened the tap, letting the cold clear water refreshing him.

Now he had to get out of here before his father will be back, but fortune didn't seem to be with him and as he turned around he faced the tall blonde male. Kouki was about to pass out because of the shock but gritted his teeth and tried to calm down even if that was impossible right now.

"How could you get out of there?!" the man yelled and kicked Kouki into his stomach. He gasped and fell to the ground but his father didn't stop. One kick after another hit the poor boy and he squirmed in pain. The boy begged him to stop but his father ignored his cries. "You stupid child! I wish you were never been born!" The man yelled hateful and tears were rolling down Kouki's face.

With his last strength he grabbed the man's leg, trying to make him stop but he just smirked down at the blonde boy evilly. With a strong kick he shoved Kouki against a wall and he gasped. His father stepped closer to him, a sinister expression on his face.

"Do you want me to kill you son? Is it what you want? Do you want me to end your miserable life?" A shiver ran down Kouki's spine and he panicked, "No! I-I don't want t-to die!" the boy stuttered more tears of fear were rolling down his cheeks. "You're pathetic…" the man shook his head, "You aren't my son…" he kicked him again, now into his face and one last time into his stomach.

Kouki cried even louder, the pain was unbearable. He felt the blood flow out of his mouth, the taste was disgusting. "Get finally out of my sight! Don't you dare to ever come back!" the man grabbed his son by his clothes and dragged him outside, throwing him into the snow.

"Go to your dear mother, but trust me, she don't want you either! That's why she left!" he slammed the door shut and Kouki remained sobbing in the snow. It was freezing outside and the storm was now arriving all over Tokyo. The darkness of the night was surrounding him and just a few lamps were there to illuminate his way.

He rested for a few minutes but he couldn't stay like this any longer, he started to freeze and his coat remained in the house in front of him. 'I-I don't wa-want to die!' he stood up, limps shacking terribly and his face was as pale as the snow. He leaned onto a street lamp and took a few breaths and started walking. Every move hurt like hell and he gasped a few times. The blood was still coming out of his mouth and he felt dizzy; not only because of the pain but also because of the lack of food.

He searched in his pockets for his mobile phone, to call for help, but couldn't find it. Suddenly he remembered that it was still in his bag and he cursed loudly. The heavily injured boy regained his last power as he did before while opening the door of the basement and ran as fast as he could. It was nearly impossible, but he somehow managed to run a few feet while crying for help. He decided to head to the hotel his mother stayed in, because his friends probably won't be back yet. He screamed his mind to the heavens but the street was empty and no one was there to help Kouki. Hundreds of snowflakes were falling down from the dark sky and the strong wind let them whipping against the boy's soft skin.

'I…I'm almost…there! I can…do this!' he thought even if the hotel was still far away. But suddenly he slipped over the iced pavement and fell backwards to the ground. He was too weak to stand up and just braced himself on his elbow. "No…I-I need to go on!" he shouted desperately, but there was still no one who could hear him. His head hurt badly; he hit it on the wall of a house, but the injuries caused by his father were even worse.

He felt how his eyes became heavy, "No! I must not lose my consciousness! I…" he tried his best to stand up, but he couldn't, it was like his legs were too heavy. Kouki tried to grab for something to pull himself up, but he wasn't successful either…

"Please! Someone helps me!" he felt hot tears coming from his eyes. He was paralysed by the cold, pain and hunger. His stomach hurt from inside and he coughed, holding his hand to cover his mouth. Kouki's eyes widened in shock as he saw the blood on his hand and panicked as he lost any feeling in his legs at the same time.

"That can't be the end! Please no…I have to…see my mother!" he began to crawl but gave up after a moment; it was too exhausting for him. "I…I need to tell R-Ren…" his voice cracked and he couldn't find the strength to brace himself on his underarm anymore and the upper half of his body felt limb into the snow.

"I need to…thank her and…Hideaki for being my friends! They…have to know!" he couldn't shout loudly anymore, his voice was just a whisper. "I can't die…I-I want to meet my mother…tell Mika th-that I like her…spend time with my friends…and l-live my life!" more tears were streaming down his face and he couldn't hold his eyelids open. They were too heavy and it even hurt to withstand the urge to close them.

Slowly everything he saw was black. He couldn't feel his body anymore, he didn't feel the pain anymore and he felt how life left his body. Kouki's heartbeat decelerated and more blood streamed out of his mouth, colouring the once white snow red. Kouki was murdered by his own father who beat him to death. "I don't want…to die…"

* * *

Ren was sitting in the car, looking outside the window. It was already dark outside and they will have to go to school again tomorrow. She sighed because she still hadn't got an answer from Kouki. She texted Hideaki and asked him if he's already back home but he said that his bus will come delayed because of the great snow storm and he waited at the bus stop.

Fortunately Ren was almost back and circumvent the trouble caused by the storm. After 20 minutes she finally arrived at home and tried to call Kouki again. But there was still no answer. 'That's really strange…' She ran to her mother and asked her to look after Kouki, checking if he's alright.

"Shall I come with you? It's quiet dark outside dear." Her mother answered worriedly but the girl shook her head with a reassure smile. "Don't worry Mom. I can do it myself and I'll be back in 10 minutes!" The woman was still unsure but the girl looked up at her with begging eyes which made her mother nod. Besides the twins were about to destroy a vase so the woman had to care about this first, "Fine, but take your phone with you and don't stay there too late." She answered with a smile and ran over to her husband to tame the children.

Ren was running down the streets, looking after her friend and pulling her scarf up to cover her mouth. A high wind blew through her coat and she was shivering slightly. She was surprised that no one else was outside but she assumed it was because of the storm. Their neighbourhood was a rather quiet one besides the most of them were probably visiting their family.

Ren walked at a faster pace as she headed the way to Kouki's house. But as she turned the corner her emerald eyes spotted something on the ground a few feet away from her. Her eyes widened as she noticed it was a person whom she immediately recognized.

"Kouki!" she cried and ran to the boy who was lying on the cold ground, covered in snow. She kneeled down beside him, undressed her coat to wrap him in it and embraced his cold body. "Kouki what happened and where's your coat?" she asked and gasped as she saw the stain of blood on his face.

The boy didn't move and his eyes were closed. "K-Kouki?" there was still no answer. "Hey it's me Ren…W-Wake up!"

She started panicking when her friend didn't respond. "C'mon! Kouki don't trick me…" she shook him lightly and his head just fell back limply. Ren shook him again and even slapped his cheeks lightly but the boy didn't wake up. The panic rose inside of the girl and tears were rolling down her face. "Kouki! Why don't you wake up? Please! Open your eyes…" she sobbed hardly and even tried to pull him up, "You're going to be ok! We just need to go to my house!"

She wrapped her arms around his torso from behind and dragged him behind her, closing her eyes because of the snow. The storm was really heavy already and although she tried to withstand it she was too weak to hold the grip around her friend. "Please Kouki, move your legs…I can't carry you anymore!" she fell back on her knees, holding the blonde boy close to her body. "Kouki wake up! Wake up!" she cried desperately, more tears were now rolling down her cheek and falling on Kouki's cold lips. "Somebody held us! Help my friend!" she screamed but her voice was drowning by the sound of the wind.

"Please just open your beautiful orange eyes!" she whispered to Kouki but it was senseless, he won't answer her. "I can't lose you Kouki! You're my best friend! My brother! My hero!" She ignored the cold around her and just wanted to warm him up but it was too late. "Kouki…don't leave us…" She refused to believe that she was holding the lifeless body of her friend in her arms. "No!" she hid her face in his chest, sobbing heavily. When she couldn't hear his heartbeat her eyes widened and she was screaming. It was loud and full of sorrow.

"You have no idea what you mean to me! I can't live without you! " Ren cried in desperation. She took deep long breaths but couldn't calm down. The girl looked back at her friend, "Y-You promised me…that we'll spend the next summer holidays at our favourite place, the meadow!" she was sounding more angrily now and glared at the boy when he didn't answer again. "It was a promise! You can't break it!" More tears were streaming down her face. But the boy was never able to spend the time at the meadow ever again. "Please just wake up…"

* * *

Yukine sat on Hiyori's desk, finishing the last exercise the girl told him to do. He sighed with a smile and put the papers aside. He and Yato stayed at Hiyori's home for a while and now the two were gone to get something to eat. The blonde boy looked out of the window, it was a beautiful spring day and the sun shone brightly.

'I'm sure it will take a while before they come back…I could go on a brief walk.' Yukine decided and stretched while he stood up. He didn't want to stay inside when the weather was that nicely and he needed a break from studying. Yukine became a diligent boy who always did his exercises probably. He closed the door behind him and looked up at the blue sky. A light wind blew through his hair and he took a deep breath before walking down the streets. The cherry blossoms were flowing through the air and sometimes tickling his skin. It's been more than two years since he became Yato's Shinki and he was even a Blessed Vessel now. It was a great honour to him and he really liked how his life was going.

'Life huh?' he suddenly thought and stopped. Many people passed him and he knew that they can't see him anyway. 'I wish I could remember how it was to be alive…' he sighed and carried on his walk.

He didn't want to think about that. There was a time he desperately wanted to be alive again and it hurt Yato which still made Yukine feeling guilty. The blonde boy really enjoyed being around Yato and Hiyori and although he sometimes had his problems with the delivery god he was finally happy again.

Yukine was lost in his thoughts and didn't notice he covered quiet a distance. He stopped and checked his surroundings. The boy was on a long bridge which crossed a river and just a few other people were walking on it too. He decided to lean on the railing for a while and watching the water dabbled underneath him. A few minutes passed and he was still staring down and let the wind rumpling his blonde messy hair.

"I can't believe it's been so long since he died…" a soft voice said which woke Yukine up from his daydream. He looked to his left and saw a couple almost next to him, watching at the sky. There was a tall boy with blue eyes and brown hair who hold the hand of a ruby haired girl with bright emerald eyes.

She wore a small but sad smile on her lips as she stared at the horizon. "I can't believe it either…It's so lonely without him…" the boy answered and Yukine took a step forward, but he actually didn't know why. "I hope he likes the flowers. I bought orange marigolds this time…" she looked up at him with her emerald green eyes and he gave her a warm smile. "I'm sure he does." Yukine watched as the girl stood on her tiptoes and placed a peck on the brunette's cheek which made him blush. "Do you think he is watching us?" The boy chuckled softly, "Yeah who knows, maybe he is right next to us like back then."

"That would be great…" Yukine could see a small tear rolling down her cheek. "I miss him Hideaki…" The boy whose name was probably Hideaki turned to her and looked down at her compassionately while wiping her tear away gently. "Me too…" he suppressed his sadness, because he wanted stay strong for the girl.

Yukine tilted his head, 'I just wonder if someone missed me after I died…' He thought and looked back at the sky. The blonde boy was about to leave and go back to Hiyori and Yato but somehow his legs didn't move.

"…Hideaki-chan?" the girl began causing both of the boys looking back at her. "You know that I love you, don't you?" she whispered and the tall boy smiled warmly. "I know…And I love you too, Ren." He gave her peck on her lips and she smiled, hugging him tightly.

Actually Yukine didn't like couples very much and just found it cheesy and stupid. But this couple was different although he didn't know why. It made him happy to see them together and he even had a smile on his lips.

Suddenly the girl took something out of her bag, looking down at it sadly. "You know…I still got this manga I made for him…I think it's time he finally gets it." The tall boy eyed her surprised as he looked at the small book in her hand. He also got one exemplar and his blue eyes widened by the memory.

"What do you mean?" he tilted his head and the girl suppressed more tears. She ripped the pages one by one out of the book which she ones had bounded together, and let them go, while they were floating in the wind. The brunette gasped as he watched the paper fly so careless to the sky and soon there were more than dozen of pages flying around them.

The girl smiled and couldn't hold back her tears anymore. "I made this for you Kouki-chan! I hope you like them!" she shouted while half-crying and half smiling. The tall boy understood that this was the moment Ren began to put her sadness behind. She would be finally able to laugh again and be the cheerful girl she always was. It made him delighted to see how she returned to her true nature.

"Wherever he might be now, the wind will carry them to him." She added and Yukine watched her surprised. He couldn't catch what was painted on the papers and the wind was quiet strong so they were gone in seconds. "I'll never forget you Kouki! Please don't forget me, ok?" she had a smile on her lips, this time it was not a sad one. This time she smiled because she knew that wherever Kouki might be, he would be happy and without any worries. He needn't to suffer because of his father anymore.

It will always hurt when she thinks about her friend but Hideaki was there to sooth her pain and every week they placed a new bouquet of flowers on his grave, hoping he will like them. "See you soon, Kouki-chan." Ren whispered and Hideaki rubbed her back gently. "We should go on…its quiet late." The girl nodded and they looked back at the horizon, the sun was rising slowly. 'Time flew by fast…' Yukine thought as he watched at the slowly setting sun.

The couple began to move on and walked past the blonde boy. For a brief moment it was like their eyes met his orange ones, but they had just looked back at the horizon. Yukine looked after them; his smile was back on his face. Although he didn't know anything about this couple nor did he remember seeing them before, they were so familiar to him.

He shook his head lightly, 'I'm afraid I have never met them before…but they seem like nice people.' Yukine looked back at the sky, one paper was flying in his direction and he could even catch it. It showed a picture of a beautiful meadow with different flowers and Yukine chuckled lightly. 'That's a quiet good drawing…' he looked down at it for a moment and then let go of it. The paper slipped through his fingers and followed the other papers until Yukine couldn't see it.

The couple was out of his sight, so he decided to go back too and as he arrived Yato was suddenly tackling him, "Yukine! There you are! I was so worried about you." Hiyori stood beside them and giggled. "Where have you been?" she asked and tilted her head timidly. Yukine scratched the back of his head. "I'm sorry…I forgot about the time."

"We're glad you're back and look how much food we bought!" Yato chirped happily and showed the bags full of food to the blonde boy. The blonde boy smiled lightly and the dark haired god continued, "Now, let's go eating something!" With a grin he ran into the kitchen and Hiyori quickly followed him before he was going to destroy the kitchen, while Yukine chuckled.

He stopped and looked out of the window one last time; the sky was already dark red. Sometimes he wished he would know how his life was before he died, but he shook his head and followed his friends into the kitchen. 'I'm certain it's good how it is now…Besides I would probably want to be alive again after I find out about the life I have forgotten…'

 _THE END_


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